Rainbow Veins
by Third Chance
Summary: Craig Tucker, a senior in high school, is confronted with unforgettable challenges. But with his friends and Tweek by his side, Craig knows he can face anything. Slash, drugs, rock'n'roll. Rating will increase. Cowritten by Third Chance and LilxMomo.
1. Untitled

_**Rainbow Veins**_

_How could this happen to me  
>I made my mistakes<br>I've got no where to run  
>The night goes on<br>As I'm fading away  
>I'm sick of this life<br>I just wanna scream  
>How could this happen to me<em>

-Simple Plan, _Untitled_

* * *

><p>A soft groan escaped from Craig's lips as he tried to sit up. His ribs hurt, his head throbbed, every muscle in his body ached with pain. Craig squinted as the world became continuously less blurry, trying to make out where he was. <em>My room, <em>he remembered, the memories flooding back to him. The frustration and anger towards the situation at hand maximized, leaving Craig quite irritated. _My dad. My fucking dad. _He wanted to snarl aloud, but was afraid of who could hear him. The raven didn't necessarily care if any old Joe-Shmoe happened to tune in; but it was Ruby who mattered most. She knew their father beat him excessively, that was absolutely no surprise in anyone's eyes.. Including many of Craig's friends and his mother. However, what did matter is not letting Ruby know how much damage the beatings did. Ruby suspected that he wasn't telling the whole truth when simply saying, "Just a few bruises" but never called him out. Thank the lord for that.

Successfully proceeding to bring his body to a sitting position, Craig tried to recall what exactly had occurred; mentally flipping himself off for being a pussy and not wanting to remember. His mother had gone out shopping a few hours prior, leaving his dad and him alone for dinner. Ruby had been at a friend's house, safe from any danger that may arise from the Tucker household. She had caring friends. _I was just sitting down for dinner when he told me 'we need to talk, boy' in that you're-not-getting-out-of-this-fucking-lecture tone. Then he brought up Tweek. _Craig's veins raced with pure hatred. Anytime that someone would talk negatively about the twitchy blonde, he'd automatically become defensive – even violent, if the situation called for it. _He told me that boys don't go with boys. A man's job is to start a normal family with a woman. _The fact that his father emphasized the word "woman" made Craig's blood boil. Girls were okay, and he had nothing against them, but sure as hell would never date one. _My dad, after getting it through his thick head that I wasn't about to end my relationship with Tweek for any goddamn woman, tried his famous approach to dealing with problems. Abuse. _Craig knew he must have been smacked around a bit more than usual this time, as he could barely function. His circle of friends at school already asked 'what the hell does he do to you' several times, but each time was met with the same response: A nonchalant shrug.

Craig sighed deeply, hating his life. The only highlight was Tweek and the rest of his friends, which included Token, Clyde and sometimes Kenny. Kenny wasn't his top choice, but instead more of a last resort. They were going through identical problems; which was one thing that brought the two together. Kenny had a younger sister, Karen, and Craig had a younger sister, Ruby. Both needed to be protected and sheltered from their abusive fathers.

His minds wondered over towards Ruby. Was she still at a friend's house? _What if she's home and dealing with our parents alone? _Their mom wasn't a threat at all – she just _let _her husband do the damage, and that was reason enough for Craig to dip below appreciative when she was present. His sister had always been supportive of him; something that both their parents lacked majorly. They only had each other, and that would have to do for now.

Craig felt the slight tug to go downstairs and see if she was home yet; but at the same time dreaded going back. All his memories consisted of fists and blood when he thought of downstairs, where his father spent a good chunk of his time. The other large portion was spent at the local bar. Craig would hear stories told from others of how vicious his dad could get when he was trashed and the raven couldn't agree more. His dad was a nightmare at any angle you looked at him.

Brown eyes shifted around the room, ensuring everything was in place. His gaze faltered on Stripe, who was sleeping contently in his cage. That was one of the four things that could keep Craig happy: small animals. The other three consisted of friends, Tweek, and Ruby. _Not family, mind you. Just Ruby, as she's the only family I have right now. _

Craig attempted a smile, but failed miserably when he stopped due to the pain in his upper lip. Dried blood was splotched around it, making the tear seem worse than it really was. _I'll tell my friends that I've been outside a lot. _That could chap people's lips, right? _At least I can guarantee Clyde will believe it. _Very few people of South Park didn't know that his brunette friend wasn't the brightest bulb on the Christmas Tree.

"Damn it," He muttered under his breath, inspecting his wounds under a nearby mirror. Craig had managed to bring himself to his feet, painfully, but got to his feet all the same. Bruises were splattered across his skin, visible to anyone who took a close look. With a little luck_,_ many of the bruises were close to his ribs and therefore wouldn't have people seeing the worst of it. _Just hope that Ruby doesn't catch me with my shirt off. Or it will be the end of telling her that the beatings aren't horrible._

Carefully thinking over all his options, he decided on saying it was a combination of the winter and bumping his upper lip on ...something. Craig decided to work on the cover story later. Right now, he was just plain tired and wanted nothing more than to sleep the rest of the night away. Upon realizing he had no idea what time he was, the raven peered over at the clock. Illuminated in light blue letters was 3:19 AM. _Holy shit, _Craig thought, _I must have been out for way longer than I thought. _Ruby was home, unless she decided to stay at her friend's house, which she probably didn't... All the same, he hoped she did.

_In the case that she did come home, it would be natural to go check on her, correct? _Without further ado, he walked slowly over to his closed bedroom door, trying to avoid hurting himself, if at all possible. Craig reached for the knob, his hand shaking from yesterday's misfortune. Turning it just-so, the raven opened the door near silently, glancing around in the hallway for any signs of life. _If my dad catches me awake, I probably won't live to see the next sunset._

A few paces down the hall and to the left brought him directly in front of Ruby's bedroom door. Unfortunately for Craig, it was closed, which meant creating excess noise when attempting to get this one opened too.

Like he did with the first, he turned the handle quietly, praying that Ruby didn't wake up to having "some stranger" walk into her room in the middle of the night. He held his breath, hoping for a little good luck for once.

Craig slipped inside his sister's room, immediately training his eyes on her bed. Ruby was peacefully asleep, stretched out. _I don't want to wake her, _he reminded himself, _she could scream or shout.. And that would give me away. _As much as he was tempted to go over and lay by her, just to be near someone, he resisted the temptation. Craig retraced his steps back to the door, and closed it softly behind him.

Moving down the hallway for a second time, Craig wondered if he had done something wrong to deserve a life like this. It almost seemed like the typical Hollywood movie. Kid is abused, kid goes through worse times, kid has happy ending. Excluding the happy ending, it matched up to his life story quite well. _Did I mention that the kids in those films weren't 18, like I was? Fuck my life. It sucks being gay, too, if I didn't mention that either. Not that I don't love Tweek.. God damn, I'd give the world for him, but my dad is just a fucking homophobe._

Craig locked his door closed behind him, not exactly welcoming to his parents. On the other hand, if Ruby wanted in, she'd be the exception. _With any luck, she's not going to wake up at this hour. _If she did, it wouldn't be so much of a deal to her as it was to Craig. He'd take the hit. Not that there was anything wrong with that, he loved defending his sister.. But his father, being the manipulative bastard he was, would bring out the "You are such a piece of shit.. I can't believe she calls you a brother. You should be there for her" and that struck a nerve once and a while. _I can't always be there for her, _Craig wanted shout back, _Ruby's fifteen. She's not completely useless, unlike me. _...according to you, dad. _If I'm so useless, why does she go to me instead of you?_

He sighed, knowing that thinking of smartass ways to talk to his dad wasn't about to answer any of his problems. _I just need some sleep. _Craig decided, making his way to his blue, patterned with stars mattress resided. When he was younger, he begged his parents for a space-themed bed, due to his spaceman obsession. That was one of the few wishes that they took into consideration. Craig loved playing spaceman when he was younger; it was one of the only games he could play that allowed him to forget the selfish and uncaring world around him.

As he lowered himself onto the bed, Craig instantly felt himself relax slightly. Though he was in pain from the bruises he received earlier, being in his bed indefinitely eased the emotional side of it. It was like his home in a home. A place where he felt safe.

Craig closed his eyes gently, letting darkness sweep over his vision. "Hmm," He hummed, contented momentarily. He thought about the nice things in life for a change, trying to lighten his damp mood. The first thing that came to mind was Tweek, Craig's boyfriend of five months. They had started dating last year, just before school started in September. That August had been the best month of his life, finally feeling better after keeping his love for Tweek bottled up. _Who would have known he felt the same way about me? _Every time Craig remembered that split moment when Tweek confessed his love for him, the butterflies and excitement returned.

His friends said he would get bored with the twitchy blonde within two weeks. By God, were they wrong. Tweek and Craig had become inseparable ever since they began dating. Every couple had their ups and downs, but theirs were always laughed off or resolved relatively quickly. _Life's too short to be fighting. _

Clyde had been absolutely shocked when Craig had told him that Tweek and him hadn't had sex. _It's not like I'm dating him just for the sex, _he wanted to shout at Clyde, but then his brunette friend would pout and grumble about how bad of a liar he was. _I am not a bad liar. In fact, I've got you all fooled about almost my entire life. _The raven smirked, satisfaction spreading throughout him. In all honesty, Craig _didn't _want to force Tweek into sex by any means. He told Craig he wasn't ready; Craig respected that. It was simple.

Craig knew for a fact that Clyde and Token had been anything but conservative. _They fuck like five times a week. _Clyde wasn't one to wait. He was extremely touchy-feely with everyone and anyone. Him and Clyde had their own little "bromance" as Token had called it; which was fine as long as it didn't interfere with Tweek. Clyde played the 'jealous girlfriend' role extremely well when he thought Tweek and Craig were spending too much time without him being included. First, he would begin the pouting. Then the shouting. Next would come the simmering. Last, he would figure out that he was being a complete douche. Craig always teased Clyde about being on his period when he threw tiny tantrums. It was the utmost of fun, because he'd get pissy all over again.

Craig felt himself getting pulled into the free-from-strife state of sleep. He melted into the mattress, ready to leave this world in exchange for one where anything was possible. Craig wished he was at Tweek's house, the faint aroma of coffee soothing him to dreamland, and of course, the blonde himself. Nothing compared to it.

_Someday, _he told himself, _I'll be able to fall asleep next to him every night.. And wake up to him every morning._

Craig fell into a state of peace with a smile plastered on his face from the thoughts of Tweek as the last piece of consciousness slipped from him.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note: <strong>I guess this could be considered our first actual Creek centric story. We're so happy to be sharing this - hope everyone loves it. Getting reviews, PM's and such is the best, so please, if you have time, let us know what you think! :) There will also be a Tyde subplot in this.

_**Thanks to all readers – we love you guys. **_

_**If you review, we'll respond in the next chapter!**_


	2. With A Little Help From My Friends

_**Rainbow Veins**_

_Would you believe in love at first sight?_

_Yes I'm certain that it happens all the time._

_What do you see when you turn off the lights?_

_I can't tell you but I know that its mine._

_Oh I get by with a little help from my friends_

_Mm I get high with a little help from my friends_

_Oh I'm gonna try with a little help from my friends_

-The Beatles, _With A Little Help From My Friends_

* * *

><p>Craig rolled over groggily as his alarm blared, interrupting his slumber. He had tossed and turned for the whole three hours he got to rest – making concentration levels low this morning.<p>

The raven, frustrated with the obnoxious beeping, slammed his hand down on the clock. _I swear when my mom bought that, she must have looked for one that can withstand a fist fight. _The whole of the Tucker family hated mornings, and didn't appreciate their alarm clock. _At least Ruby has a cooler one that I do. _His sister's alarm clock could barely count as one of those horrid contraptions. It was more like a radio programmed to turn itself on and play a certain song at a specified time.

His mind began to seriously contemplate if he should just go back to sleep. _Until Ruby gets up. _Craig told himself, knowing he wouldn't be able to sleep through _her _alarm. Music was hard to fall asleep to – especially when its his sister's music. She was a big dubstep fanatic... Which in other words means 'She was a big keep-the-entire-town-awake-and-holding-their-ears-in-pain fanatic.

Craig didn't enjoy dubstep. In fact, he didn't like anything that went _wob wob _the whole time. _Rock is where it's at. _Craig thought. If _he _was blessed with such an alarm clock, Craig would have chosen to wake up to _Start Me Up_ by The Rolling Stones. _Wouldn't that make for a lovely waking-up song? _Craig snarkily asked himself.

Training his eyes on the blue numbers of his clock, Craig glared at it for all he was worth. It was 6:19. _School starts in one hour and eleven minutes. Damn it._

Throwing the sheets back to his feet, he felt a sudden _whoosh _of cold air hit him; This was one of Craig's least favorite parts of getting up and going to school.

Before he could even make a move to sit up and get his clothes on, Ruby came bursting in through the door and yelled, "Time for school!" She made a beeline towards his bed, and in a sloppy movement, threw herself onto it.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious." Craig replied sarcastically, shifting away from where Ruby had landed.

Ruby lifted her hand to flip off Craig.

He rolled his eyes in response, not having the energy to flip her off right back. Craig absolutely _hated _when people tried to be cheery in the mornings. He wanted to be grumpy and that was that. "Why are you so happy?" Craig grumbled, getting out of bed.

Ruby huffed, "Why are you so bitchy?" She slid into a sitting position, and crossed her arms, glaring daggers at Craig.

"I have every right to be bitchy," Craig announced, smirking maliciously. He pulled on his famous chullo over his uncombed black hair. This was one of the most vital pieces of his apparel, and it was always put on before anything else. "..Why didn't you knock?" He demanded, recalling when Ruby had unexpectedly came flying into his room.

"I assumed you wouldn't be jacking off _this _early in the morning," Ruby retorted, yet again giving him the middle finger.

This time, Craig didn't waste any time flipping her off back. _Did I mention that Ruby and I have this game of fighting at any spare moment? _But Craig knew in his heart that Ruby and him would always have each others backs when it really counted.

"You better hurry," Ruby warned, "I might eat all the pancakes mom made if you don't."

_Mom made pancakes? _This got Craig's attention. Pancakes were his favorite. "You wouldn't dare," He said, just loud enough to ensure that Ruby would hear.

"Challenge accepted," She smirked, jumping off his bed and running down the stairs.

_Oh that bitch is not going to get my pancakes. _He bolted over to his dresser, pulling open the top drawer, where his shirts were. Craig grabbed his plain dark blue button shirt; He loved this one like no other. Even his graphic rock band T-Shirts didn't compare to it.

Quickly, Craig opened the bottom drawer, where all his pants were messily stacked atop one other. _Jesus Christ, if you're just going to wear it again, why fold the damn thing? _He grabbed a faded pair of jeans, slipping the garment on in record time.

Before heading downstairs, where the delicious pancakes were calling his name, Craig snagged his cell phone from the nightstand, where his annoying alarm clock from hell sat.

He shoved the electronic into his pocket and darted out of his room, slamming the door behind him. Craig ran through the hallway, and down the stairs – almost tripping and falling flat on his face, straight into the kitchen.

The steaming hot pancakes were already on the table, only a few left. The majority of them were piled on Ruby's plate, smothered in maple syrup. _Well, it looks like Ruby wasn't kidding when she threatened to take my share._

"Scared I'd eat them all?" Ruby teased.

Craig laughed and flipped her off for a second time this morning.

Mrs. Tucker swatted Ruby over the head, playfully, "My little angel wouldn't do that."

"Better think twice," Craig smirked.

The raven took his usual chair, next to Ruby, across from his mom. His dad, being the manipulative fucker he was, always had to sit at the head of the table. _He must think it gives him power of the rest of us. _Craig assumed, bitterly. _But that's not what gives you power. It's the fact that you're trying to kill your family by pounding us into the ground._

_Shit. Speak of the devil. _Craig's dad came waltzing down the stairs, as normal. Craig's mom pretended she didn't notice, quietly eating her pancakes. _She's like a sheep. Trying to block everything out like it isn't a problem._

"Good morning," Craig's father said, absolutely no kindness behind the words.

Craig mumbled, "Good morning," in response, staring down at his still-empty plate. He reached across the table, slowly, wondering if his dad would stop him. In this family, when Mr. Tucker was around, you never knew what you could and couldn't do.

He slid the plate full of pancakes towards his empty one, mouth starting to water with anticipation. Craig picked up his fork, preparing to stab his breakfast. In one swift movement, the raven successfully lowered two pancakes onto his plate, ready to chow down.

"Want syrup?" Ruby murmured quietly, as Mr. Tucker took a seat at the head of the table, where he "belonged".

Craig nodded, not caring to say anything that may upset his father. _Again, you just never know. _He gently took the bottle of maple syrup from Ruby's grasp, and poured the sweet liquid over his breakfast. It looked scrumptious. The feeling to simply pick up his plate and shove all of it into his mouth was fought back. They were a perfect tan, not burnt, like how Ruby and Mr. Tucker made them.

During his sophomore year, Craig was forced – _yes, fucking forced –_ to take a class on how to cook and clean and sew. _It totally sucked balls, too. _The raven reminisced painfully. The teacher hated him, due to his "attitude", or lack thereof. He had shown zero interest in being a part of the class; _But I walked away knowing how to make easy foods like cookies, pancakes... or whatever else there is. _This was just another reason for Mr. Tucker to be mad at Craig. ("Son, why the _hell _are you being taught to do a woman's job?") _Yep, there goes my dad on one of his sexist rants._

He spared a glance at the clock on the wall, ticking away. _6:43. That should give me enough time to finish breakfast, pick up Tweek and Clyde, and get to school, easily. _Tweek seemed to hate being late for class, so Craig made sure he gave the blonde enough time. When his boyfriend was pissy, it wasn't a good thing. Ever. Chaos ensued, one way or another.

Craig continued eating his pancakes, savoring every bite of the heavenly breakfast. "Thanks, mom. The pancakes are great." He complimented his mom on her cooking, willing her to say _something. _She had been eerily silent the entire mealtime.

She met Craig's brown eyes with her old, tired-looking blue ones, the corners of her mouth twitching up. _Is there any way to get this woman to talk? _He thought, frustrated that she was so scared of her own husband. _She'll barely move. _For the last ten minutes when his dad had been present, Mrs. Tucker had barely touched her pancakes. All she did was shuffle them around with her fork – almost like what Tweek did when he was nervous that someone was watching him eat.

"So Craig," His father cleared his throat, "What are you doing in school today?"

The raven shrugged in response, not caring or knowing, for that matter. Apparently, this wasn't good enough for Mr. Tucker.

"I asked you a question, boy," Mr. Tucker growled.

_Yeah, thanks, I totally missed that. _He fought his tongue, trying to bite back the bitter remark. "I don't know," Craig settled on, in his monotone, nasal voice.

Mr. Tucker turned away, to face Ruby, "Are you doing anything special today? Obviously, you're brother is too good to share with us."

Craig heard this and immediately tensed, hating that his father chose Ruby as his next target, and completely butchered Craig's words. "I didn't say that," He pointed out calmly, trying not to spite his father further.

"Exactly. It's what you _didn't _say," Craig's dad snarled, "Now, Ruby?"

Ruby looked like she was about to cry, even though she was fifteen. _Don't worry, I feel that way too, when he's around. _Craig wanted to send her the message, mentally. _He makes me, an eighteen year old, want to cry my fucking eyeballs out sometimes._

"I'm taking tests today," She replied, uncomfortable and her words choked up. Mr. Tucker looked as if he approved of her answer, because he nodded and trained his eyes on his food instead. Craig could literally see the relief on his sister's face.

As he finished his pancakes, Craig piled his silverware atop the plate and headed towards the counter. Setting his plate down, he looked at his mom through the corner of his eye. She was sitting, dull and lifeless, as if she wasn't real at all. This slightly unnerved Craig. _She looks dead. _He thought, spooked.

"I need to get to school," Craig broke the heavy silence. _I'm so sorry Ruby.. _He wanted to apologize badly for leaving her alone with Mr. Tucker and their lifeless sheep of a mom. Instead, he decided to try and lighten her mood, "See ya, Captain Obvious. Don't be late for school." Craig smiled at her, picking up his backpack and keys.

He could hear the soft, and somewhat musical laugh of his sister, and could feel the hard and stern gaze of his disapproving father. _Oh, just shut up and smile for once, dammit. _Craig wanted to shout at him.

He opened the front door, shivering at the blast of January air hitting him. He walked onto the slick pavement, covered in ice. Turning around carefully, as not to slip, fall on his face and die, he closed the door behind him.

Walking down the driveway, he removed his keys from his pocket and unlocked the blue corvette he had bought a year ago with saved money. It was fucking gorgeous. His dad had told him "Corvettes are not the car for South Park," but Craig didn't give a shit. _Just because you don't have something as nice as I do, doesn't mean I can't have it either._

Craig made his way to to the driver's seat, and pushed his key into the ignition, turning it ever-so-slightly. He heard the familiar purr of the engine starting, and sighed in contentedness. The raven melted into the seat before beginning towards Tweek's coffee-colored house.

He watched the scenery pass, with a peace building within him. Craig didn't particularly like the people of South Park, but he didn't mind the trees and plants. They, after all, had nothing to do with the strange happenings and chaotic disasters. When he was shipped off to Peru, that had just been the fault of the fatass Eric Cartman, the Jew Boy Kyle Broflovski, Pansy Ass Stan Marsh, and Kenny McWhoremick. _Goddamn, they have strange ideas. A Peruvian Flute band?_

Craig felt his heart flutter as he approached Tweek's house. It may not have been the manliest thing, but hell, who cared? _I love Tweek and that's not about to change anytime soon. _A positive about living in the small town of South Park was everything was in walking distance or less than a five minute drive. He switched on the radio before pulling into the Tweak's driveway, knowing that Tweek liked to listen to music most of the time. _He says it calms him.. And by god, it does._

Craig parked his car in the Tweaks' driveway, and honked, hoping Tweek would get the message. _If you don't want to be late, you should probably get your ass out here._

As if on cue, the blonde sprinted from the safety of his home and dashed into the car, slamming the door behind him. Craig watched, amused, from the comedy act that just took place in front of him.

"Is the mafia chasing you?" He joked, in monotone.

Tweek covered his ears, exerting a "GAH!" before turning to Craig, and glaring, "N-no! I just don't want to – ERGH – be l-late."

Craig continued smirking, on the brink of bursting into a fit of laughter.

"Fuck y-you," Tweek snapped, seeing that the raven was having fun with his paranoia. _Lord, how did this kid get so adorable? Is it wrong that I find him saying 'Fuck you' to me endearing?_

Craig finally couldn't hold it in, he laughed, just like he wasn't the monotone and boring 'I don't give a shit' kid at school. "Are you always this charming in the morning?"

Tweek scowled and began to pout. _Wow, he really knows how to get his way. _Whenever Tweek pouted about something, he knew Craig would eventually give in.

"Fine," He sighed, "But really, what made the mafia want to come after you?" Craig joked, trying to lighten Tweek's mood. _I hate mornings and don't like being happy – but who could resist when you're with Tweek?_

"Shut up and d-drive." The blonde commanded, flicking his eyes down to the radio. A second later, his hand shot out and changed the station.

"Really, Tweek?" Craig dead-panned, as the song _Rip Her To Shreds _by Blondie began to pump through the speakers.

Tweek frowned, and shot back, "I like – ERGH – this song."

"What if I don't?" He questioned, playfully.

The blonde rolled his eyes, "It's s-scary to think that people – GAH – like you are a-allowed to vote."

Craig feigned hurt, returning his full attention to the road ahead. Next stop: Clyde's house. Craig had offered to pick up Token also, but he had refused, stating he was capable of providing his own ride. Driving to school was always an adventure with Tweek and Clyde.

Clyde's house came up fast, and Craig honked the horn again, signaling that it was time to go. Clyde wasn't exactly a "fast-mover" though, and this made Tweek fume beyond belief.

The last thing Craig needed this morning was a bitchier-than-normal Tweek, so he decided it was time to get the show on the road, "HURRY THE HELL UP OR I'M GOING TO LEAVE YOU BEHIND, TACO BOY!" Taco boy was Craig's nickname for Clyde. Personally, Craig found it quite entertaining – unfortunately, Clyde did not.

Clyde walked from his house, looking quite pleased with himself, as per usual. _Clyde's so arrogant.. And lightheaded. Comparable to a balloon, if you think about it. _Craig's musing was interrupted as Clyde climbed in the backseat and slammed the door.

"Hey Clyde," Craig greeted, getting ready to drive the final length to the South Park high school.

Clyde snapped on his seat belt and stretched out across the backseat, "I'm not a taco boy."

"You s-so are." Tweek jumped in, defending Craig, his green eyes filled with amusement.

"Why is the whole damn world against me?" Clyde demanded, training his eyes on Craig and Tweek, "Just wait until we see Token. He'll take my side."

"Ooh, you jelly, Clyde?" Craig smirked, knowing Clyde hated the popular slang for 'jealous'.

Clyde mocked his tone, "Ooh, you peanut butter, Craig?"

"Clyde, you are such a gay fish." He responded back, referring to the old joke Eric Cartman and Jimmy Valmer made so many years ago.

"Craig's p-parents didn't hug – NGH – him enough when he w-was a kid." Tweek explained to Clyde, who was mocking a hurt expression.

"Makes sense." Clyde nodded, "It's okay, Craig. I can hug you whenever you want."

Craig tried to look as disgusted as possible, "You do realize that Richard Simmons is a bad role model, don't you?" He asked, monotonously.

"Hardy har-har," Clyde said dryly, then picked up his party-going attitude again, "Did you know that he's not really gay?"

"You just keep telling yourself that, Clyde," Craig laughed, turning into the school's parking lot.

Clyde whined, "Why are you so mean to me?"

The raven parked his corvette, shut it off, and looked at Clyde, "Aw. Poor Clyde." He turned to Tweek, "Guess you're my new target, since Clyde's off limits."

"OH JESUS!" Tweek screeched, unbuckling his seat belt and dashing out of the car.

Clyde followed Tweek's actions, getting out of the car as well, and walking up to the main building.

Craig closed his eyes for a split-second, then went after his friends, who were already halfway to the doors. Closing the car door, he yelled across the parking lot, "Wait up!" Before jogging to try and catch up with his friends.

Panting, he finally caught up to Clyde and Tweek. "Fuck you... ditchers..." Craig grumbled between breaths.

Tweek smiled at him, and it was the most beautiful thing in the world. _Tweek's smiles are to die for.. _And Craig couldn't help but smile back. "Y-you said I'd be your next t-target." The blonde reminded him, as if explaining why he whizzed away.

"Psh," Craig blew it off, "I was bullshitting you. Clyde's always going to be the target." He grinned evilly at his brunette friend who looked less than pleased at this piece of information.

"It was too good to be true," Clyde murmured, just loud enough for his two friends to hear.

Craig smirked, as they walked into the building. He glanced at a nearby clock, it said 7:14. They had time to find Token; Perfect. "Come on, you guys." Craig commanded, distractedly, grabbing Tweek by the hand and pulling him down the hallway, with Clyde following close behind.

"Where are w-we going?" Tweek stammered, watching kids at their lockers, retrieving books for their first class of the day.

"We're going to find Token," Craig grinned, seeing the library's double doors up ahead, at the end of the hallway.

Clyde's face lit up like a fucking Christmas Tree. "Finally," The brunette exclaimed, "some justice for Uncle Clyde!"

"Uncle Clyde?" Craig and Tweek asked in unison.

Clyde just glared, and muttered, "I don't judge you."

_Now that's just bullshit, Clyde. _Craig thought, light-heartedly.

As Craig opened the doors to the library, he quickly spotted Token, alone at one of the tables. He was usually here in the mornings, reading to his heart's content. In all honesty, Craig could say that Token read more than anyone he knew.

"Hey guys," Token waved them over, catching Craig's eye.

Clyde rushed over, and sat down next to Token. Clyde's red jacket and Token's red shirt looked almost identical – and they were both wearing blue jeans. They looked like twins.

Craig glanced at Tweek's clothes. He wore a faded green button up shirt, and darker green skinny jeans. The raven smiled; He loved it when Tweek wore skinny jeans, though he didn't have much of a choice. Any other type of jeans would slide right down if Tweek didn't wear a belt.

Making his way with Tweek, over to where Clyde and Token sat, Craig took a seat in one of the wooden chairs. "Do you think Taco Boy is an appropriate nickname for Clyde?" He asked Token, seriously.

"Yeah," Token agreed, "Why not? He likes tacos."

Clyde folded his arms across his chest, "Told you the world was against me!" He pouted, while Craig burst into hysterics. _Not even his own boyfriend will defend him on that one. Got you, Clyde._

Even Tweek giggled a little, which made Craig's heart soar, and want to kiss him in the middle of the library. But of course, Tweek would spaz out on him for PDA, so it wasn't an option.

The first bell rang, and Craig could have sworn he saw Tweek jump a foot.

"It's okay," Craig assured him soothingly, "It's just the warning bell. Which-" He checked the library clock, it was 7:23, "means we should probably get to our lockers."

"P-probably. ERGH!" Tweek nodded in agreement, following Craig as he turned away from Clyde and Token, who were following close behind. The school had arranged for students' lockers to be placed in alphabetical order, leaving Tweak and Tucker next to each other.

They strode down the hallway in a comfortable silence until reaching their destination.

Craig quickly turned the lock accordingly to his given combination. From somewhere in the mechanics of the locker, a click sounded and the locker was free to open. Retrieving his much needed textbook, notebook and folder for physics, which he had first period.

Tweek was staring sadly at his lock when Craig glanced over there, confused as to why he wasn't preparing for class. "My h-hands are shaking." He mumbled softly, embarrassed.

Craig chuckled, "Combination?"

"5, 31, 18." Tweek told him, stepping out of the way so Craig could open his locker. With a click, it was open. "Thanks." He smiled gratefully up at his boyfriend.

"You're welcome," Craig semi-smiled back at the blonde, and turned back to his own. Gathering his physics materials, he shoved the rest into his messy locker before he closed it.

"Want me to walk you to history?" Craig offered, his brown eyes focused on Tweek's green.

Tweek looked gleefully at the raven, "Y-yes, please." Craig knew that Tweek hated walking alone to his classes. He was terrified that something impossible was going to happen – like being kidnapped by gnomes.. Or abducted by aliens.

"Okay," He replied, returning to his nasally monotone voice.

Tweek and him walked down the hallway, only stopping once because Tweek needed a sip of his coffee and was afraid he'd break a tooth out if he tried to do it while walking. Craig thought that was pretty smart for someone who was constantly terrified.

"You're pretty," Craig commented, his eyes flicked onto Tweek's.

Tweek stared at him like he was from another planet, "W-what?" The blonde looked confused as hell.

"I said 'You're pretty'," The raven repeated, this time letting his fondness towards Tweek show in his eyes.

Tweek grinned and thanked him.

_How could people hate this guy? He's just so fucking cute._

When they arrived at Tweek's history class, the bell was two minutes away from ringing. _With any luck, I'll be able to get to _my_ class on time. _Craig prayed, giving Tweek a hug. After all, they wouldn't get to see each other for the next hour.

Craig smiled as he watched Tweek go, then turned to dash to physics. _Two minutes. Fuck. _He passed the lockers at maximum speed, hoping that he wouldn't run into anyone.

_Riiiiing!_

"Shit!" Craig cursed aloud. _What did it matter? No one was in the hallway to hear me, anyway. _He got to his physics class about twenty seconds after the bell. Chin held high, Craig walked in, and took his seat.

"...using a methodical approach to compare the implications of the theory in question-" The instructor looked at him cruelly, "Thanks for deciding to join us, Craig."

Craig flipped him the bird; his signature gesture.

"Did you just flip me off, Mr. Tucker?" The teacher demanded.

Craig tried not to laugh. This was the first thing that came out of any adult's mouth when he flipped them off, "No." He replied, casually, in monotone.

Craig's teacher gave him a glare, but moved on with the rest of the lesson.

* * *

><p>Craig's yawn was interrupted by the bell, announcing class was over. It was time for lunch. <em>I just survived through physics, french, and calculus, respectively. Not that calculus is hard, for me. <em>Craig had never had issues with any form of math. It came naturally to him. That was the one and only class that Craig Tucker could actually impress a teacher.

Collecting his textbook, folder and notebooks, he waited for Tweek, who was beside him, to do the same. Tweek had always struggled with calculus, and Craig was doing his best to tutor his boyfriend – who clearly needed it.

"Ready?" Craig addressed the blonde, who was currently trying to rearrange all his items.

Tweek nodded briskly, and replied, "Y-yes."

"Token, Clyde?" Craig questioned the two, glancing their way. It was a miracle that they were all given calculus together.. It was their only class, aside from Phy Ed. _And everyone knows that Phy Ed suck. _"Clyde," Craig said loudly, trying to wake up his friend who must have dozed off, "CLYDE!"

"Wha-" The brunette sat up, looking around rapidly.

He knew exactly what would get get Clyde up and moving, "It's lunch time." Craig explained.

"HOLY MOTHER OF GOD, WHY DIDN'T SOMEONE TELL ME SOONER!" Clyde rocketed out of his seat and to where Craig was standing in about three seconds flat. _Impressive, if you ask me. _Craig thought, amused by how well Clyde was disciplined when it came to lunch.

Craig, Token and Tweek, followed Clyde, as if he was an excited kid at the mall and they were his parents – it was quite funny, actually, considering they didn't even have tacos today. _Good lord, please don't let there be tacos anytime soon. Clyde might run us over._

"Come on," Craig urged, "We need to catch up to Clyde before he murders someone for a few crumbs."

Tweek and Token laughed, most likely because everyone could see Clyde going through with it. You never knew with him.

Getting into line behind their brunette friend, who looked like he was attempting some tribal dance to see around the person who was in front of him.

"It's pizza today, Clyde." Token supplied.

Clyde huffed.

"No tacos for taco boy," Craig teased, assuming Clyde was disappointed because there were no tacos for lunch today.

Clyde growled playfully, "Shut up. My mom was right when she said I should quit hanging out with you because you were a bad influence."

"I am _the best _influence you'll ever get," He shot back, holding his chin high. "I have a _pretty _boyfriend-" Craig listed off, referring to when he called Tweek pretty earlier, "a sheep for a mom, and a beautiful guinea pig, Stripe. What more could she want?"

"I don't know, that all sounds very -" He began sarcastically, "Wait, did you just say 'a sheep for a mom'?" Clyde stared at him in disbelief.

"Oh, goddammit Clyde," The raven rolled his eyes, smiling, "Just move up in line."

Clyde shrugged, as if to say _you're the one with a sheep for a mom _and caught up to where he was supposed to be.

Craig could feel Tweek huddle closer to him, "D-do you – ERGH – really have a sheep for a mom?" _Oh yeah, that's another thing. I've never had Tweek over to my house in fear of my dad being there "unexpectedly". _His green eyes were darting around as if a herd of demon sheep were about to maul him. Or gnomes, one could never guess with Tweek.

Craig chuckled, locking eyes with the poor paranoid boy, "No. That would really suck." _And it does. Fuck my life._

Tweek laughed with him, a sight that made Craig want to explode with joy. _That can't be healthy. I don't love him too much, right? Is that even possible? _"Y-yeah, that would." Tweek agreed, interrupting his train of thoughts.

Ahead of Craig, he could hear Clyde placing his order for a Italian sausage pizza. He turned to Tweek, "Are you going to even get pizza?" _Tweek barely eats anything. Maybe a cup of fruit, if I'm lucky._

Tweek responded, "Why wouldn't – NGH – I?", as he placed a frozen yogurt onto his tray.

"You don't usually have much," Craig reminded him, "That's why." _No wonder you can only fit in skinny jeans, Tweekers. You don't eat a damn thing._

The blonde looked as if he was speaking a foreign language.

"Peperoni," Craig requested, seeing the food being plopped onto his plate without much enthusiasm. Most of the teachers in this school, when it came to the said boy, were less than ecstatic.

The lunch lady looked around Craig, "Next." She demanded.

Tweek glanced behind him, probably making sure Token hadn't turned into a mutant goat or something, "C-cheese pizza, please."

"Next," She called again. This was starting to get on Craig's nerves, as it did every other school day.

Craig, once he was finished paying for his meal, walked across the cafeteria to their normal spot by the window. During the winter, students weren't allowed to sit outside, so this was the next best area.

Clyde was already there, his pizza half gone. "Holy shit," The raven commented in monotone, referring to how much his best friend had eaten before Token and Tweek had even arrived.

"Om Ongry, okay?" Clyde responded with his mouth full.

Setting his tray down, Craig sat on one of the cheap plastic seats, "Swallow or you'll probably choke to death and I won't save you."

Clyde just glared at him as Tweek and Token did the same and took a spot around the table.

"What did you do to Clyde?" Token asked, picking up his peperoni pizza, and taking a bite.

"I informed him I wouldn't be his savior if he happened to choke on his pizza." He stated in monotone, locking eyes with Token.

He nodded in understanding, most likely unable to talk due to the pizza in his mouth.

Craig flicked his eyes back to Clyde's, "See? We don't all talk with our mouths full."

Tweek chuckled at that.

"I hate you all," Clyde mumbled, finally chewing and swallowing before speaking.

Craig laughed, "Now you're getting it."

* * *

><p>The final bell rang, just as Craig finished his calculus homework. He hated taking a textbook home, so study hall was the way to go.<p>

Clyde yawned and then stretched, blinking his eyes which appeared to be adjusting to the light. _Does he nap the whole day? I guess he didn't get much sleep either. Not saying that the reason for his sleeping in school habits aren't due to his laziness._

"Let's go find Tweek," Craig suggested, ready to go home after a boring day of classes._ On the bright side, I have no calc or history homework. _He reminded himself mentally.

Clyde grunted as he got up, pulling his folder and notebook to his chest. "Okay."

They left the room; Craig flipping off his study hall teacher as she walked passed them. "Hi Token," Clyde greeted his boyfriend, as he was just coming out of his own study hall.

Token waved and walked over, "Hey guys."

Craig waved back, heading towards his locker.

"'Ey, killjoys!" He heard a semi-nasal voice call out evilly. _Eric Cartman._

Token, Clyde and Craig all turned to see the fatass stalk up to them, his gang following.

Craig had little patience for Cartman. Ever since they'd met, it had been an instant hatred. Cartman had tried to bully, make fun of and even cheat him out of his money – what was to love about the guy? _I have no idea why Stan, Kyle and Kenny still hang around him._

"What the hell do you want, Cartman?" Craig growled, matching his stone cold gaze.

Cartman smiled sweetly, but had malicious intentions behind it. Everyone who spent the last twelve years of their life having to deal with him knew that Eric Cartman was pure evil. "I asked Bebe, _my _girlfriend of the last four months out again, since our relationship needed a little down time. And you know what she said?" _He's playing with me. I know it.. _There was no winning against Cartman.

"No," The raven replied, completely monotone. Clyde stared at Eric from behind him, like a kid hiding behind his mother's leg.

"Well, you fucker, she rejected me," _Doesn't surprise me_. Craig thought, amused. "Do you know _why?_" Cartman sounded like he was talking to a young child.

"I'm pretty sure it's because she's looking for a dick and not another pussy." he said with a smirk, amazed that Cartman had opened himself to any snarky comments.

Cartman didn't falter, "No, she mentioned something about being in love with none other than _Craig Tucker_." He sneered.

Craig swore the people around him could hear his heartbeat. Trying to maintain a steady gaze, Craig growled, "So?"

"You son of a bitch," Cartman snarled lowly, "Why did you do that?"

About a month ago, in December, Tweek had been bullied by Eric for being openly gay and dating Craig. To this day, Craig cursed at himself for not coming to the blonde's rescue in time. Tweek had finally enough of the bullying and ended their relationship.

Craig had been furious with Eric.

Craig went and convinced Bebe to have sex with him, only to spite Cartman and hurt his feelings. Bebe went through with it, and within the next week, she had dumped Eric, supposedly for Craig – who was already back with Tweek.

_And now it sounds like she still wants me. _Craig thought, terrified. "You were hurting Tweek." He calmly responded, not shifting his eyes from Cartman's.

"Why did you have sex with Bebe?" Cartman demanded, losing his patience.

A crowd was forming around the scene. Craig wanted to be anywhere but there at that particular moment. _What if Tweek is hearing this? I never told him about what I did to get Eric Cartman to stop teasing him. Fuck._

Craig couldn't take it; There was no way he'd let another word about Bebe get through the fatass' mouth. He balled his hands into fists, and prepared to land a blow on the larger-than-average target.

The raven was ready to smash Cartman's face in, but his arm was grabbed by Token in the nick of time. "What the hell, dude?" Craig turned, pissed off at his friend.

"It's not worth it," Token whispered back, "Let's just go." _Token: Always the peacemaker._

Craig groaned in annoyance, but obliged, "You're right." He flipped Cartman off and mouthed 'fuck you' before walking away towards his locker.

He reached the metal locker and quickly swiveled the lock according to the combination. It opened easily, and reached inside to retrieve his backpack.

Through his peripheral vision, Craig could see Tweek attempting to open his own locker. "Need help?" Craig offered.

"N-no, I got it. ACK!" Tweek replied, smiling, as the locker was accessible. "Thanks a-anyway."

"No problem," He said as he adjusted his backpack, and waited for Tweek, car keys in hand.

The blonde collected his items, stuffed everything in his messenger bag and shut his locker. "O-okay," Tweek stuttered, meaning he was ready to go.

Craig started to walk away, to go find Clyde, but stopped when he heard Tweek speaking to him.

"What w-was that between – NGH – you and Cartman? Something a-about Bebe?" Craig probably looked as if he seen a ghost. On a normal basis, he was pretty damn good at lying when need be – but to Tweek? _How could I?_

"Nothing, don't worry about it," Craig assured him, gripping his sleeve and pulling him to the front of the school where their meeting spot was. _There's no way I could ever tell Tweek. Never._

Tweek nodded, and let the matter drop. _Thank god. _Craig was relieved. _Please don't bring that up again, Tweekers.. _"Look!" Tweek pointed, "T-there's Clyde."

Craig and Tweek jogged up to their brunette friend, who was waiting for them. "Took you long enough." Clyde drawled.

Craig just snorted, "Please excuse me while I go reevaluate my life."

Clyde stomped his foot, "I wanna get home. Are we going or not?"

Craig turned towards the doors of the school, and waited until Tweek was through to slam it in Clyde's face.

He could hear Clyde yelling something about him being a selfish bastard before flinging the door open and chasing after the blonde and raven.

When Clyde got caught up, Craig was ready, "Took you long enough." He grinned evilly, thrilled that he was able to use his friend's words.

"Go to hell," Clyde muttered back.

Craig laughed it off and unlocked his corvette. Tweek immediately took shotgun, leaving Clyde to take the backseat again.

He turned the key in the ignition and started the car, looking behind him to back up carefully. _No fucker is going to get my car scratched up. _Craig exited the school parking lot, entering the one of the only streets in South Park: Main Street. The town was home to a few more, but they lead to people's houses and neighborhoods.

Craig glanced over at Tweek, considering there was never much traffic to look out for in their quiet mountain town. He was watching everything pass out the window, and appeared to be more peaceful than ever.

Eventually, Clyde's house was upon them and Craig turned around, "We're here, Taco boy." His statement was met with a glare from Clyde. "That means get out." Craig clarified.

Clyde stuck his tongue out at Craig and exited the vehicle. Tweek and Craig watched as their friend ran the last distance to his house, being greeted at the door by Mrs. Donovan. _She's such a nice lady._

Craig began driving towards Tweek's house. "You're quiet," Craig prompted Tweek, "Is something wrong?"

"N-no," Tweek shook his head rapidly, as if coming out of a hypnotized state, "Are you – ACK – going to stay for d-dinner?"

Craig shrugged. _Why not? I have nothing to be home for. _"Yeah, if you want me to." He said.

"Of course I w-want you to," Tweek smiled at Craig.

"Well in that case, absolutely."

Craig parked in the Tweak's driveway, and got out of the car with Tweek close behind him. "My p-parents love when you come o-over." Tweek grinned, shrugging.

Craig smirked playfully, "Who wouldn't?"

* * *

><p>"Thanks again for letting me stay for dinner," Craig said as charmingly as he could manage as the homemade chicken noodle soup was placed in front of him.<p>

Mrs. Tweak clasped her hands together and smiled warmly at Craig, "You're always welcome at our house, Craig. Tweek talks about you all the time." She explained, patting Tweek's untamed blonde hair.

"Mom," He hissed, clearly not enjoying the 'pet' treatment. Craig thought it was cute. The blonde examined his soup, picking up a spoon and dipping it in the broth. Bringing the silverware to his mouth, Tweek ate the chicken noodle soup.

"Do you like it, honey?" She cooed, watching over him like a hawk.

Tweek nodded, "'S g-good, mom." He took another gulp of soup.

_If he likes it, the soup has to be good. Might as well try some, since I won't be getting fed at home. _Craig tasted the soup, it was fantastic. The pinch of salt and flavor made his mouth water for more.

"How about you, Craig? Do you like it?" Mrs. Tweak addressed him.

"Yes, Mrs. Tweak. The soup is delightful." Craig put his best behavior on around Tweek's parents. There was no way he'd lose Tweek because he didn't get along with his boyfriend's family.

Mrs. Tweak grinned approvingly, "Glad you boys like my soup. Richard here, will eat anything placed in front of him." She motioned to her husband, who gulped down the chicken noodle in big spoonfuls.

Craig chuckled at this, seeing how true it was. _Just wait until he tries my dad's pancakes._

"M-mom?" Tweek shakily asked, "C-can you get me m-more coffee?"

Mrs. Tweak patted his head, much to Tweek's dismay, "Certainly, dear."

A few seconds later, Tweek's mom came back with another mug filled with coffee. _Coffee relaxes him. _And Craig knew this for a fact, because he saw the creamy liquid work its magic in the past.

"Would you like anything, Craig-honey?" Mrs. Tweak asked him.

"No, thank you," Craig smiled back, "It's enough just to be spending dinner with you all."

_Instead of at my house. Instead of the living hell._

* * *

><p>Craig drove through South Park, on his way home from the Tweaks' residence. <em>They act so perfect. Like a family from the movies. <em>When he compared his boyfriend's family to his own, it made him sick with jealousy. _At least I can say the Tweaks _will _be my family someday. Someday when I can escape this house, haunted by my dad's expectations. _Watching the road carefully, Craig realized how beautiful the town was at night. There were no people out and about. The only lights were streetlamps, piercing the darkness with a yellow glow. Even the snow shimmered in the moonlight.

Craig checked the time in his car, it was 8:11. He had stayed at Tweek's house for about five hours, goofing off, watching Red Racer and having dinner. All in all, it was a laid-back and fun night. Tweek was much calmer in his own home, and that's part of what made it the best place to spend time with him in. He would become so lively and playful.

Craig parked against the curb, and turned off the blue corvette. Sighing, he contemplated whether he should even go in or not. _I've slept in my car before, I can do it again. _The last time he did that, Tweek had found out and Craig was chewed out for the next week. ("You s-should have just came to m-my house!") Bracing himself for a beating, Craig walked up to their house.

It was amazing to Craig how normal and civilized something could look on the outside, but on the inside it was downright torture.

He opened the door slowly, trying to figure out who was home. "Hello?" Craig called in, wondering if _anyone _was home.

Ruby sat at the computer, where she was playing Happy Wheels. "Hey, Craig." She replied emptily, her eyes focused intently on the monitor.

He rolled his eyes playfully, "I never thought I'd see the day _you'd_ be glued to a computer screen." He dropped his backpack and walked over to where Ruby sat and leaned over her shoulder to examine the game. "Interesting game, Ruby." He commented with a faint smirk tugging at his lips.

Ruby didn't reply, she only tapped on the keyboard, activating her character, which was an old-man in a wheel chair. "You're not going to make it," he pointed out with a taunt gleaming in his dark brown eyes as he saw Ruby's next obstacle. It was a pit with two large gears spinning close together, something that was bound to crush the old-man into non-existence. "You'd have to be an expert to cross that."

Ruby snorted softly, "Will too." Without another word, Ruby made the character make a quick jump off the ledge, and almost immediately fell; the man was already ground in the big, revolving gears.

Ruby's eyes widened with disbelief as she lost the bet Craig had made against her. She swiveled around in her chair and feigned an angry glare, raising her hand to flip Craig off, "It was your fault, you distracted me!" she said, though faint humor leaked in her eyes to let Craig know she was joking.

"Hey, old-men in wheelchairs can't fly. I tried to tell you-"

"Craig!" His mother's voice called, interrupting him. She lifted up from the couch slowly, where she had been watching TV. She turned to look immediately at Craig, folding her arms across her chest, "Where have you been?" She sounded more worried than angry. _That was a good sign._

"Is dad home?" Craig turned from the computer to look at her, countering her question with a question of his own. He felt it was a lot more important to know the whereabouts of his dad than himself.

"No, he's at the bar," she informed him, a slight frown appearing. _Uh huh. Didn't see that coming._

"I was at Tweek's house," The raven answered as he saw her frown, guessing she was patiently waiting for his reply to _her_ question; he tried to determine whether he was in trouble for it or not. Once in a blue moon, his mother would get protective enough to punish him for being somewhere and not telling her.

She nodded gravely and turned back to the TV. _What the hell is wrong with everyone tonight?_

Craig was determined to find out, "Am I in trouble?" Keeping his voice monotone, he asked the question he was dieing to know the answer for.

"You're father wants to talk to you about skipping dinner without telling anyone," Mrs. Tucker replied quietly, retreating into sheep-mode.

_So that's what it is. _"Oh." He said softly. A feeling of dread drifted over him, he didn't want to have to deal with his father _again. _

Though, he didn't regret going to the Tweak's; he still had enjoyed being with a family that was actually _bonded_ instead of having to worry about not 'impressing' his father.

With the silence that now hung in the air, he started to feel a bit uncomfortable. Without saying a thing, he decided to clear the living room in a few steps and bounded upstairs to his room.

Opening the door, Craig drank in the familiar smell of his bedroom. Stripe squeaked happily as Craig walked over to his cage, opening the small door to reach in and stroke the small animal.

"You are so fucking adorable," Craig monotonously complimented his pet. He had a soft spot for little creatures – which included Tweek.

His cell phone, stored away in his pocket, began to vibrate. Craig carefully shut the cage's door, then fished around for his phone. Flopping down onto his comfy bed, Craig checked to see who the message was from. _If it's Eric Cartman, I'm going to kick his ass tomorrow._

But the text wasn't from Cartman.

It was from Kenny, and read: got weed, want 2 smoke it w me?

Kenny and Craig smoked marijuana together often – it was their way of escaping from real life's troubles. _Probably not the most healthy thing, but I don't give a damn anyway._

Craig responded: sure. when

After a moment or two, his phone buzzed with a reply: u decide

k. how bout fri, Craig suggested.

Kenny texted back: ya ok tmrw works

Craig couldn't wait until tomorrow, not because of the weed, but because it meant a weekend. His dad was rarely home, always at a bar during his break from school. Realizing tomorrow was Friday made Craig's night.

_You know what? I'm going to do my homework for once. _He decided, pulling his backpack onto the bed. _Token would be proud of me._

Pushing his phone to the side, Craig set to work on his American Literature project.

About five minutes later, his phone buzzed again, alerting the raven that he had a new text message. _Kenny.. What now?_

Picking up his phone, he smiled to himself as he saw the text was from Tweek, and it simply said: Love u, craig ps the mafia didn't catch me yet

Fuck the weed and tomorrow being Friday. Tweek had made his night.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**TC = Third Chance**

**LM = LilxMomo**

**TC: **After working 16 hours straight, this is the finished product :D

**LM: **It didn't help that TC had a nervous breakdown while writing it.

**TC: **FFn was pissing me off.

**LM: **Well you were Ffn pissing me off too ;3

**TC: **..and now you're just trying to get on my nerves. WHY DID I CHOOSE YOU

**LM: **Go Pokemon!

**TC: **Gotta catch em all..

**LM:** Heh. This chapter made me feel very accomplished. I finally ate while on the mic talking to you ^^!

**TC: **I didn't want you to starve. Just as a little fun fact, we stayed up until 3 am writing this.

**LM: **Well, I guess that's one more phobia off my list.

**TC: **You had a phobia of eating while on the mic?

**LM: **_Excuse me _for growing up with manners. .

**TC: **Do they have a name for that? Foodonmicophobia?

**LM: **If there isn't, there is now :O

**TC: **We should probably get to the shoutouts.

**LM: **Yes, indeedy :3

**Soapy Tucker;**

**TC: **Love at first sight, y'know?

**LM: **Haha, couldn't agree more.

**TC: **Was this update soon enough? We're planning to put up new chapters ever other Tuesday.

**LM: **Oh yes, that's wonderful chap.

**TC: **Pip will not be in this story.

**Hannah Emily Bunker;**

**LM: **Oh thank god Tweek has no life threatening illness in this fic. :)

**TC: **Unless he gets HIV from Craig.

**LM: **If he gets it, let's hope soon :3

**TC: **No smut for you.

**LM: **Bitch. :(

**TC: **...Gonna ignore that. Thanks for your review, it means a lot :D

**LM: **We're not done here D:

**TC: **oh yes we are.

**SuperDuperGir;**

**TC: **You favorited this? I think I love you.

**LM: **...If I favorite this too, will you love me more :3?

**TC: **Helpful flashback: 'Bitch :(' ..No.

**LM: **Hah, I don't remember that.

**TC: **Now you're getting as bad as Clyde.

**LM: **How dare you.

**TC: **I don't see you reviewing the story. Or favoriting it. Or remembering that you called me a bitch. I shall always love our reviewers more.

**LM: **Nuh uhh. I love this reviewer wayyy more than you do.

**Sexy And I Know It;**

**LM: **Thank you very much, sexy. :3

**TC: **She's just trying to one-up me.

**LM: **Pshh, that's not true.

**TC: **...Well, nevertheless, this reviewer deserves lotsa love.

**LM: **Dx One more, more than me. Lucky reviewers.

**TC: **Oh hush. You'll get your share of lovin later.

**LM: **Oohyay.

**And thank you to the following shy ones who didn't review but added this fanfic to their story alerts or favorites :D we still love you guys:**

_**xSucksToYourAss-marx **_

_**SomeoneCMary **_

_**WizerdBeards**_

_**Vember85**_

_**AlchemyAndWaffles**_

_**rylara-solkarii **_

_**SparklesMakeMeHappy**_

_**Dramatic Sleeper**_

_**Starrydango**_

**Have a Happy Valentine's Day everyone! **

**Best wishes from TC and LM**


	3. Everything Is Alright

_**Rainbow Veins**_

_Tell me that you're alright_

_Yeah everything is alright_

_Oh please tell me everything is alright_

_Yeah, everything is alright_

_I'm sick of the things, I do when I'm nervous_

_Like cleaning the oven_

_Or checking my tires_

_Or counting the numbers of tiles in the ceiling_

_Head for the hills, the kitchen's on fire!_

-Motion City Soundtrack, _Everything Is Alright_

* * *

><p>Craig woke up to his mother's screaming. The first, and immediate thought was: <em>Oh, fuck, dad's home. <em>Followed by a feeling of anxiety spreading throughout him, when remembering that his dad wanted to have a "chat" with him.

He hated "chats", and that word in general. _My dad always uses that word when we have a heated debate that ends with my guts all over the floor. _When he was still in middle school, Craig clearly could go back to a time in his memory where whenever the word "chat" was spoken, he would pale. _Things got that out of hand._

...He thought his dad was home; That is, until he heard what his mom was screaming about.

"Craig! Get up!" And she sounded mad. Craig was tempted to yell back, asking if his dad was home – but if he _was, _then matters would only get worse.

Craig used his better judgment to pull himself out of bed, seeing he was late this morning. _Did I sleep through my alarm? _He mused, not completely distraught and upset. It was only 6:40, and that was enough time to get ready. _Maybe I'll just skip breakfast this morning. That would definitely give me plenty of time to pick up my boyfriend and the whiny bitch._

Blinking the sleep from his eyes, Craig walked over to his dresser, rummaging through it for something decent. South Park High School didn't exactly welcome band t-shirts with open arms. He had gotten suspended for a Sly Fox shirt about a year ago, only because someone associated it with their song 'Let's Go All The Way'. _Thank you, Stan Marsh, I'm sure you were proud of yourself for that one. _Pansy-ass Marsh wasn't his first pick to hangout with, as any idiot could see.

After becoming frustrated with his options, Craig went back to old reliable – his blue button up shirt. His shirt and chullo nearly matched, and that made it even better. Speaking of the chullo, he had almost forgotten. The raven pulled it down from his bed post, pulling it over his black hair.

"Get your ass down here, Craig!" Mrs. Tucker yelled once more. Groaning, he slipped into a pair of black jeans and headed downstairs, ready to face his dad.

Craig slipped a belt through his jeans as he headed to the lower level of the Tucker family household. It wasn't a necessity, however, Craig liked his belts.. Just like he had a 'thing' for Stripe and other small, defenseless, furry creatures. _Stripe makes me soooo happy. _He looked around the dining room and kitchen, given they weren't separate areas, and snapped, "Well? Is the house on fire?"

Mrs. Tucker raised her head to look at Craig, who appeared none too happy that he had been woken up. "Honey, it's time for school." She replied rather gruffly, flipping her son off.

The gesture didn't go unrequited. "Is dad home?" He asked, monotonously. _I'm assuming he's not, given that I haven't been beaten into the wall like a pulp, yet. For whatever the hell I did wrong. Oh right, miss "family" dinner. Families generally don't try to fucking murder each other. _

"No," Mrs. Tucker replied, "He's been out the entire night. Drinking, I assume." She finished her statement rather quietly, as if pretending it was a lie. "Craig, please. Talk to your father. I'm getting worried about him. He's been absent more and more, and I can only guess it's because he can't accept that you're gay."

_Well of course it's because I'm gay. My dad cannot bare to tolerate that his only son likes boys. _Craig stared incredulously at his mother, "Talk to him? Why the hell would I talk to him? All he ever does is try to -" He stopped short, not wanting to continue his outburst. Not with his mother looking guilty and sister horrified. "Never mind. I'm going to school." He mumbled, throwing his backpack over his shoulder. "Bye Ruby and ..mom."

He walked down their ice-covered driveway, thanking the lord he didn't have to walk to school since he was a freshman. _In South Park, walking to school everyday is worse than death. Although it's about a ten minute walk, it still freezes the shit outta you._

Craig unlocked the car, and slipped into the driver's seat. He decided it was best to let the car warm up to the harsh conditions of their mountain town before attempting to pick up his boyfriend and bro. Once the raven had come to the conclusion that his corvette could withstand the temperatures, he started in the direction of the Tweak household.

Craig watched the road ahead of him, trying to keep himself focused. _It's not like there's tons and tons of people in this town. Nobody drives around at 7 in the morning. _In fact, the road was completely dead of life and that certainly wasn't news to Craig Tucker. _I've lived in this town for eighteen years and never once did I encounter large amounts of traffic. _That was one of the very few benefits of living in a small town; When called upon, it wasn't necessary to take the traffic conditions into the equation.

He pulled up to his boyfriend's house, smiling at the thought of seeing the spazzy blonde again. This was one of the small things in life that everyone seemed to overlook. _Just the fact that your loved one is alive and I can see him and hear his voice. _Craig slipped his phone from his pocket, choosing to be on the playful side this morning. He texted Tweek: good morning sexy, ready for school?

After a couple seconds, his phone vibrated, and the reply read: fuck off

Craig snickered, knowing Tweek never appreciated going to school. Craig came to the conclusion it would be better to leave their short-lived conversation at that, not wanting to egg on Tweek's cranky side that was most noticeable during morning hours.

The blonde emerged from his house, not appearing to be in a rush by any means. He trotted over casually to the corvette, taking a quick look around with his emerald eyes before plopping himself down in the passenger's seat.

"You're l-late." Tweek accused, staring straight ahead. Craig examined his boyfriend's expression, trying to evaluate whether or not he was being serious. _I know I'm late, but he's actually mad about it? _It didn't take too much to make Tweek Tweak mad, but Craig liked every aspect of the blonde's personality. It gave their relationship life.

"Aw, love you too." Craig chuckled, leaning across to give Tweek a quick hug.

Craig swore his heart did little flips when Tweek cracked a smile, contentedness flashing in his eyes. He let out a sigh of relief inwardly, glad that Tweek wasn't angry with him after all. "You k-know I -ACK- love you too."

Craig stepped on the gas pedal lightly, ready to get going to Clyde's house. "You're such a sweetheart." He said, sarcastically, "First you text me to fuck off, then you point out how late I am, and now you tell me you love me."

Tweek scowled slightly, putting on his "pouty face" as Craig called it.

He smiled at the reaction, relishing the ability that he had to fluster his boyfriend. "You're still better than Donovan." He joked, realizing that wasn't saying much.

A second later, Tweek shot to crank the radio to full blast, drowning out Craig. He responded by flipping Tweek off, humor glinting in his eyes, and proceeding to turn the radio down. "Okay, fine, I love you the way you are." Craig gave in, wanting to make peace with the blonde, "You make me soooo happy." He reminded Tweek honestly.

Tweek's lips curved upwards in a subtle grin, obviously enjoying that he could force _the _Craig Tucker to give in to him. _My god, I love him so much. Why does my dad have to be such a homophobic prick, anyway? No matter what he says, Tweek, I promise I won't break up with you._

Craig stopped his corvette in front of the Donovan's household, trying to grin innocently when he saw Clyde in the front yard, tapping his foot, annoyed.

A second later, his friend let himself into the vehicle, taking his usual spot in the backseat. "Craig Tuck- _Fucker_, you better have a goddamn good excuse!"

_And now you're starting to sound like my mom. _"Craig Fucker does not want to hear Clyde's complains at the moment." He stated in monotone, driving the car to the South Park High school. He tugged at the mirror until he could see Clyde clearly, and flipped his friend off. "You complain more than Tweek."

"H-hey!" Came Tweek's protest, earning Craig a glare from the blonde. Clyde looked just as unhappy, if not more.

Craig watched Clyde put his hands on his hips, "I am not complaining!" The brunette snapped. _Great, I have two friends that don't like the morning. Or going to school. _

"At least Tweek looks cuter when he complains," Craig snickered, finding a fair amount of humor in Clyde's stance.

"Well _excuse _me!" Clyde huffed, crossing his arms over his chest and staring down at the floor of the car. "Craig, dude, you need to clean the inside of your car." He looked into the mirror once again, trying to determine what the hell Clyde meant by that. Craig frowned as he saw Clyde holding up an old book that he was forced to read by his American Literature teacher a couple months back. "We were supposed to turn these in, asshole."

"Screw you," Craig growled, playfully, and then switched the subject, "McWhoremick has weed. He wanted me to do it with him – you guys in?" He asked, knowing it would be alright with Kenny, who loved to be around people. _With him, it's the more the merrier; In any situation. _

"W-weed?" Tweek asked, fear showing clearly on his face. "Like.. marijuana..?" He clarified, slowly.

Clyde made a fist-pump motion in the backseat, shouting, "Oh hell yeah! I'm in."

"Yes, _like marijuana_," Craig repeated, to Tweek, hoping for once the blonde could get over his nightmares and theories to just be a teenager. _Not that I should be talking, I'm fucking eighteen. _"And sweet, bro." He responded to Clyde, who was evidently more excited than Craig had thought he would be. _Never underestimate a Clyde._

Craig's thoughts of hope were dashed when Tweek declined, "No.. I d-don't want to get into that s-stuff." He sputtered, eyes darting everywhere around the vehicle, nervously. "I'm s-sorry.." He apologized, as Craig watched his every moment. _Jesus Christ, Tweek, it's not worth crying over. _Craig wanted to tell him, comfortingly, as he saw his boyfriend's eyes, tears in the corner.

"No problem," Craig blew it off, much to his own displeasure. He didn't want Tweek to feel pressured about this, nor did he want the blonde to cry over something so small. The raven pulled into the school parking lot, groaning at the familiarity of everything.

After spending four torturous years of your life here, seeing the same scenery everyday got old. "We're here." He announced, parking as close to the building as he could get. _I don't understand how people like Butters tolerate this place. _The teachers never helped with anything, the administration didn't give a damn, and the kids were mean as fuck.

"Ca-.. can scarves choke p-people to death?" Tweek asked, anxiously, pulling at his white, red and green scarf. It was one of Craig's favorite, as it reminded him of peppermints. That was something not everybody knew about him; That Craig absolutely loved the taste of peppermints. _But there's millions of tiny things that nobody knows about me. Excluding Token, Clyde and Tweek – they know me better than I do._

Craig chuckled, "If you use it the wrong way, but I think you'll be okay." He smirked at Clyde, seeing that the brunette had the 'what a stupid question' look basically written across his face. "Ready to go?" Craig prompted, not wanting to be late. "It's 7:23, barely enough time to get to class."

"This is all your fault, dammit!" Clyde whined, undoing his seat belt to exit the car as Tweek and Craig did the same.

"Oh, can't I ever do anything right?" He mocked being absolutely distraught and hurt from Clyde's comment. He watched as the brunette, snug in his fuzzy red jacket, muttered an incoherent sentence under his breath and shuffled up to the building's double doors.

Craig turned to Tweek as they sauntered into the school, being greeted by a warm burst of air. "Thank god we're graduating soon and I'll never have to see this place again." He walked along the hallways with Tweek, both having (almost) the same destination. _Thank you administration for alphabetically ordered lockers._

Tweek grinned at Craig, "We still have f-four months left." He reminded his boyfriend, much to Craig's dismay. _Fuck, you're right. I wonder how much longer I can put up with Cartman's shit. And Stan's whole group, to be blatantly honest. I can't wait to get away from all of you._

"Thanks for reminding me," He growled, rolling his eyes, then ruffling his boyfriend's hair affectionately, letting him know that he was kidding. "If I didn't have you, Token and Clyde this school would be unbearable." On a normal basis, Craig didn't say things like that. He barely ever mentioned how much his friends meant to him; It was more like something that Craig hoped everyone knew, and so he didn't have to say it aloud.

The warning bell sounded, advising all students to get to their class as soon as possible. It also meant the time was exactly 7:25, giving them five minutes to get their shit in order. "Come on," Craig urged, grabbing Tweek's wrist. He had made it a habit to grab Tweek's wrist and not hand, understanding Tweek was shy and didn't like public affection. _I can see where he's coming from. We're surrounded by homophobic jerks and closet cases who would take any chance to make fun of us. _He jogged down the hallway, praying that Tweek could keep up – which he undoubtedly could, given that the blonde could outrun him – to his pace. _We need to get to our lockers. Otherwise, you might be late.. and then be in a bad mood for the rest of the day. _Tweek had a strong distaste for being late to his classes, however, he would occasionally ditch school altogether. Craig was never able to comprehend why on earth it was okay to skip but then unacceptable to be minutes late.

Craig, reaching Tweek's locker, did the combination and opened the storage unit with ease. Tweek couldn't do it himself, due to his shaking hands. Then turned to the one left of Tweek's, and slid his own combination into the lock, tugging on it fiercely until the damn thing opened. _This school has some of the shittiest lockers. _

He grabbed his physics notebook, folder, textbook, pencil and agenda after stuffing his backpack in, slamming the door behind him. "Will you be okay or do you want me to walk you there?" He offered Tweek, cocking his head slightly.

"Can you p-please walk me?" His boyfriend answered shyly, cheeks tinting a pale shade of pink. He looked utterly adorable. _Not that he ever looks ugly. I don't think that's humanly possible for Tweek to look ugly or not adorable._

Craig shrugged, "Your wish is my command." He walked with Tweek down the hallway of South Park High School, ensuring that Tweek got to history alright. "I wonder why Token doesn't walk you to history." He murmured aloud, musing about the idea. A part of him was glad that Tweek didn't walk with Token, because that meant less 'alone' time with his boyfriend.

"-ERGH!- I.. don't know. He's always h-here earlier than I ever am." Tweek shrugged, mirroring Craig's initial movement.

"Does that make me a bad escort?" Craig joked, as they approached the classroom.

Tweek shook his head rapidly, making his hair look additionally messy. _I wonder if he ever tries to comb it. _The raven was brought back to a time in fourth grade when him, Clyde and Token attempted to harness Tweek's hair.. By slicking it down to fit in with the metro fad. That was one of his fondest memories with his boyfriend, before they were dating.

"See you later," Craig squeezed his wrists lightly, a silent, second goodbye. He was thankful that he'd see Tweek soon, they had a couple classes together.

Tweek gave a half hearted wave, turning to leave Craig alone in the deserted hallway. Glancing at a clock, Craig noted that he had two minutes to get his ass to physics. If he was late again today, like he was yesterday, he'd be sent to Mr. Mackey's office without a question or second chance.

The raven turned on his heels and sprinted down the hallway, since no one was looking or there to witness it. _If someone reported me for this, I'd probably get suspended. _Craig Tucker had a horrific school record. He was known as the troublemaker, a badass, but most commonly the stoic male who hates the world.. _Which is certainly not true. _Craig added inside his mind.

Reaching his physics class, after running past rows and rows of classrooms and unused lockers. _We only have thirty kids in the entire grade level, why the hell does this school need so many lockers? _He entered the classroom, going unnoticed, since everyone was scattered about the room. Class didn't start yet, which meant it was social hour. Fortunately for Craig, he didn't have anyone he wanted to talk to in this class, so he could be his usual quiet self.

Craig took his seat, reaching for his notebook for something to do. The raven enjoyed sketching, and writing fiction, though he'd never admit it to just anybody. There was no way he'd risk his reputation for it; The only people who knew about his love for creative arts was Tweek, Clyde, Ruby, his mom, Stripe and Token. And they all were forced to swear they wouldn't tell a living soul about it. _Except Stripe, because he's the loyalest guinea pig a guy could have. _

He continued scribbling random doodles of childhood memories, like Terrance and Phillip, for the next thirty minutes or so. He only stopped when he felt eyes burning into the back of his head. Craig turned to see the whole class staring at him, and his physics teacher impatiently awaiting an answer.

Craig groaned loudly, wanting to show his disapproval. "Mr. Tucker, would you like to share your answer with the class?" His teacher questioned him, although it sounded more like a statement than anything else.

"No," He replied, as per usual. Craig flipped off his teacher, knowing how much this particular instructor hated it. _I may not date Tweek to spite my dad, but I do enjoy spiting my teachers once and a while.. Okay fine, I enjoy doing it a hell of a lot more than "once and a while"._

"Craig Tucker," The instructor barked, "Do you need to see the school counselor? I expect an answer. _Now._"

"Up yours," Craig snarled, turning away from the scene he was creating. _It's not that I want attention, I just hate this fucking asshole._

"To Principal Victoria's office, Mr. Tucker!" His physics teacher yelled angrily.

Craig was about to get out of his chair and mope down to the Principal's office until he heard a female voice call out in his defense, "Calm down, Mr. Mawur, he didn't mean it!"

Craig craned his neck to find out who would possibly stand up for him. It made sense that it was a female; Craig wasn't an idiot. He had been told time and time again that he was the hottest in the class, proven by the list girls made a long time ago.

"Bebe, please don't interupt-" Mr. Mawur stopped mid-sentence, seemingly trying to make up his mind, "Alright. Craig Tucker, watch your language." The teacher turned back to the board, continuing the lesson. _Apparently he has a soft spot for girls. _Craig concluded. _So it was Bebe who defended me? _He looked in the direction of the sound, and there sat Bebe, smiling at him. Craig blinked his thanks, not wanting to break the stoic expression he held.

He was starting to become more and more convinced Cartman wasn't bullshitting him when saying that Bebe wanted Craig back. _Please let him be the dirty, lying, cheating asshole he always was._

* * *

><p>Craig smiled to himself as he heard the lunch bell ringing, announcing that it was the one time of day where students could do whatever they wanted – literally. <em>The administration just doesn't give a flying fuck. <em>Craig had even brought Tweek, Clyde and Token to McDonald's or Subway before, to pick up edible food. _Have I mentioned that South Park High School's food is not exactly what I'd call "edible"?_

"Let's go!" Clyde whined, wanting to get a decent spot in line by picking up the pace. He looked ready to piss his pants, the way he was bouncing around the hallway, while the four headed to the cafeteria.

Craig rolled his eyes, Tweek twitched and Token sighed in defeat. They all realized that Clyde would get cranky if they didn't abide by his commands, _especially _if said boy was hungry. (In which he always was, so there wasn't too much of a difference there.)

Tweek was trying to keep up with Clyde, who was a few steps ahead of everyone else, obviously anxious to eat. The blonde was messing with his iPod touch, something Craig was always jealous of. He had a phone that could easily store play lists and such, but he admired the way the iPod touch kept everything ten times more organized.

Craig and Tweek shared a love for music together, and often listened to the same types of material. _Rock n roll. It always seems to calm Tweek. _...Which was why he adored when Tweek listened to his iPod. The blonde let go of the conspiracy theories and all dangers in the world for a short amount of time.

"Come on!" Clyde whined again, motioning frantically with his hands to follow him into line. The group had reached the cafeteria in pretty good time, mainly thanks to Clyde for that. "I want to get my goddamn turkey sandwich!" He shouted, taking a place in line and waiting for his friends to catch up.

Clyde was finally satisfied when his friends were all behind him in line, perfectly.. Just like ducks in a row. "Turkey sandwich? Is there any other option?" Token asked, peering at the menu that was scribbled carelessly on a whiteboard next to the concessions.

"Um," Clyde began, squinting at the small print on the board, "I think the other option is cock's choice... That's a weird name."

Craig bit back a snort of laughter, "Clyde, that says cook's choice." He watched in amusement as both Clyde and Tweek turned bright red. Clyde because he was simply embarrassed and Tweek because he hated sexual references and jokes.

"Turkey sandwich," Clyde ordered the food lady, who was handing out the meals today. Craig winced; All the lunch people hated him, and Clyde, for that matter. "_Clyde always demands too much food, then there isn't enough for other students, mmkay." _He was reminded of what Mr. Mackey said to Clyde one day when they were in 6th grade. _It was hilarious. What made it even more funny was that Clyde had zero shame in the act of taking too much food for his own good._

Tweek picked up his usual: A fruit cup, but today he added a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The fact that Tweek was eating more warmed Craig's heart. Craig grabbed a turkey sandwich, along with Token, who had apparently turned down the "cock's choice" this time.

They sat down at their usual table, Token doing homework, Clyde babbling his head off, Tweek listening to music, and Craig... Well, being Craig. He leaned over the blonde's shoulder, taking a glance at his iPod, and what song was currently playing.

"What'cha listening to?" Craig asked, taking in Tweek's sweet coffee scent. That was one of his other favorite things about Tweek – they way he smelled. Some would call it creepy, but he smelled fucking amazing sometimes; Just like a caramel mocha. Craig didn't have a taste for coffee, but it sure as hell smelled wonderful.

Tweek turned his head to face Craig, green and brown eyes meeting. "B-bowling For Soup... 1985." He replied, after taking a quick peek at his iPod.

Craig nodded, "Good one." _Since Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, way before Nirvana... _The refrain played in his head, "Now I'll probably have that song stuck in my head for the rest of the day." Craig chuckled, then bringing the sandwich to his mouth and taking a bite out of it.

He nearly choked when someone else set their tray down on the table and asked, "Mind if I sit with you?" _Oh, fuck you. Bebe. _Craig paled, desperately staring at his food for an escape. There was no way he could make eye contact with one of his friends without them either ignoring or pointing it out.

"By all means," Clyde responded, gesturing with his hand to the seat next to him. _Dammit, Clyde. Why do you have to be such a social butterfly? _Out of the corner of his eye, Craig could see Token was just as happy with the new arrangement as Craig was. _Keep her away from me, Clyde. _He begged the brunette, praying that's what his plan was the whole time. Clyde knew perfectly well about the "Bebe incident", though he didn't like it. He had specifically told Craig it couldn't end up positively, and Craig didn't listen. _There was no way I wanted Tweek to slip through my fingers. If it meant fucking around with Bebe, then so be it. _In the bottom of his heart, he was counting on Bebe to keep this a secret; Or Tweek would be through with him forever. _What would he think if I told him I had sex with Bebe to make Cartman stop picking on him? ...He would surely understand, right? If he would, why the hell can't I tell him? Or don't want Bebe or Clyde to tell him?_

"Hi, Bebe," Token greeted, pushing all the emotions that were flickering in his eyes aside. He earned a smile and wave from the blonde he was addressing, and she returned to her lunch. Craig thought he was off the hook until Bebe looked up, and met eyes with him.

"Aren't you going to say hello, Craig?" She cooed, her voice soft and musical like it had always been. All of his hopes of escape were dashed by the simple sentence.

"Craig doesn't do hello's," Clyde said, giving away nothing. _Thank you, Clyde. Maybe you are good for something. I'll make a mental note to take you to Taco King after school sometime._

Craig's eyes hesitantly glanced around the table, Token and Bebe appeared normal, Clyde was being a pig as usual, but Tweek had an odd expression written across his face. One that Craig didn't understand in the least; He'd never seen it before.

His green eyes were still, lifeless. _You look half asleep, Tweekers. ..Maybe you didn't get enough rest. I know the gnomes keep you up from time to time._

"Bebe," Tweek acknowledged her at last, casting a glance her way to emphasize his half-assed greeting.

"Hey Tweek," She replied, friendlily, "Ooh, nice hat, Craig." _I've been wearing this one for twelve years now. Thank you for noticing, I was desperate for your approval. _Craig thought, sarcastically.

He didn't bother to look up, the flirtatious comment wasn't the most clever and therefore didn't deserve his full attention, "Thanks." Craig responded, far more interested in what his boyfriend was feeling. _He looks "off".. Is he sick? Should I take him home? What if he knows about Bebe and I?_

* * *

><p>Tweek sat silently, waiting for someone to make a move. He had absolutely no idea why Bebe chose now to come and flirt with <em>his <em>boyfriend, but sure as hell didn't like it. _Why don't you kick her out, Craig? Why does she have to stay at our table? Can't she go back to sitting with Wendy, Red, and the rest of the girls? _Tweek anger was multiplying, though the blonde knew he couldn't show it. _Craig would probably hate me. What if he really does like Bebe as a girlfriend? Oh sweet Jesus, help me!_

"Tweek, man, you okay?" Token was gazing at him, puzzled. _No, I'm not okay. Some third party is trying to steal my boyfriend!_

"Yes," He mumbled under his breath, just loud enough for the table to hear, "I'm f-fine." Tweek lied, knowing telling the truth about wanting Bebe to leave would only be worse. Craig was glancing at him blankly, however his eyes told people who knew him that the raven was suspicious. _Craig knows me too well. _Tweek thought, coming to the conclusion that the lie he just told was translucent to Craig.

"So what are you guys up to tonight?" Bebe giggled, staring directly at Craig. _Who does she think she is? _Tweek thought, frantically, trying to come up with a way to make Bebe leave. _What if Craig thinks she's better than me; Because she's bold and daring?_

Tweek figured out what he had to do. This morning, when Craig offered to share the weed, he said no.. _But I should have said yes. If I do weed with him, maybe he'll forget about Bebe. _The blonde's senses were blinded by jealousy, too angry to care that he was stepping in to do drugs with Clyde, Craig and Kenny. The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them, "Craig, I changed my mind, I want to ...um, you know.. do the... weed." He finished quietly, whispering the last part to Craig, not wanting Bebe to hear and invite herself.

Craig looked down at Tweek, as if inspecting and analyzing him. After what seemed like years, although it was only a couple seconds, he nodded, approving the blonde's decision. The nod was accompanied by a small smile and, "See you there, then."

The lunch bell rang, sending Tweek into a twitching fit, as he didn't expect lunch to be over quite yet. _At least that means no more Bebe. Does Craig have her in any of his classes?_

That was all the blonde was worried about until what he had just agreed to smacked him in the face. _..So I'm going to be doing weed? _His hands immediately shot to his hair, pulling on it out of anxiety. _Oh Jesus, what have I done?_

* * *

><p>Craig was woken by the sound of the bell, signaling school was out and students were free to escape the prison. <em>Took long enough. <em>Clyde was beside him, packing up his things already, They had both finished their homework nearly ten minutes ago, as it was a complete breeze today. Especially for Craig, who loved any form of math, while Clyde was great at history.

Craig followed his best friend out the door, still contemplating why Tweek would be acting so strangely. The thought _had _crossed his mind that it was possible he was jealous of Bebe – but he had no reason to be. Bebe would always be just a friend, no matter what.

Clyde and Craig parted ways, given that "D" and "T" were on different ends of the hallway. Tweek was already at his locker; He was lucky. His study hall was only a few feet away, which made it simple for him to go back and forth.

_Whenever I have to get something from my locker, I have to fill out a pass and get marked tardy. He could sneak out and be back in before anyone noticed... If I could do that, I would be sooo happy. _"H-hi Craig," Tweek greeted his boyfriend, packing his messenger bag.

Craig grinned slightly, letting Tweek know he was glad to see the blonde, "Hey Tweekers. Ready to go home?"

"Yeah, -ERGH-," Came the reply from the spaz. "Almost d-done." Tweek announced, zipping up the bag.

Craig had nothing to take home, as he didn't have any homework. He snatched the bag from his locker and slammed the door behind him, the sound just adding to the chorus of other lockers being shut.

"Let's go find Clyde," He suggested, shifting his eyes to the double doors, where Clyde waited for his friends. "Never mind, found him." The brunette was there, as always. _Another thing that isn't fair. Clyde's locker is right by the exit.. If my locker was by the exit, I would be s- _His thoughts were interrupted when Tweek brushed past him.

Craig and Tweek made their way to where Clyde stood, ready to leave. "God, you guys take forever!" The brunette whined, pushing through the doors, avoiding getting one slammed in his face; A repeat of yesterday.

The raven unlocked his car, allowing Clyde access to it without having the alarm go off; Which would have been pretty funny, however Craig didn't feel like drawing everyone's attention to himself, for a second time today.

Craig climbed into the driver's seat, just as Tweek did the same in the passenger's. He let the car warm up, not wanting to break his corvette, which seemed as if it cost Craig millions. He remembered working to buy this baby, and that had taken forever.

Once everything was in order, he exited the school parking lot with practiced ease, driving towards Clyde's house. "What the hell was up with Bebe today?" Clyde asked, bluntly, "I remember her being clingy, but... seriously, what, the, hell."

"I was wondering the same," Craig replied, honestly not having a clear answer as to why Bebe decided it was mandatory to hang with their group now.

Tweek fidgeted, appearing as uncomfortable as ever with this conversation, "W-why did she sit with -GAH- us?" He questioned. Craig got the vibe that he was indeed jealous, and the question he just asked was rhetorical.. Or at least sounded like it.

The conversation died away as they arrived at Clyde's house. Nothing was more than five minutes by car in the town of South Park, which was totally sweet. "Here we are, Clyde." Craig announced, leaning back into the seat.

"I'm going, I'm going," Clyde grumbled, shutting the vehicle's door behind him. Tweek and Craig watched as he raced into his brown house, not bothering to lock the door. _His parents are probably home. _Craig assumed, driving to Tweek's house.

They arrived all too soon, which meant he probably wouldn't see his boyfriend until tomorrow. "Bye, Tweekers." He leaned over and kissed his boyfriend's cheek, making him blush. Tweek's blush was absolutely irresistible, and Craig loved it.

"Bye," Tweek returned, hopping out of the car and rushing into the house, most likely because the outdoors were "unsafe". He was convinced child predators were out to get him ever since fourth grade or so, when the kids were forced to live with Mongolians, for about a week. Craig sighed, hating coming home. He was always home before Ruby, who rode the bus home, and that meant complete turtle speed.

Craig looked at the snow, the trees, Stark's Pond as it went by. Everything appeared peaceful, which was odd for this town. Stan, Kyle, Kenny and Cartman went on less "adventures" than they used to, to everyone else's relief. It was a nice change for Craig who loved things boring, excluding Tweek. The blonde was what gave him life and energy.

Arriving at his house, Craig parked on the side of the road, and turned off the vehicle. He heard snow crunching under his shoes as the raven walked up to his front door, preparing to unlock it.

Craig watched as the door opened before his eyes, and then realized why. His dad was eye-level with him, appearing angrier than ever. _This can't be good._

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note:<strong>

**TC: **Well lovely readers and reviewers, that is chapter three. Everything is under control, so don't fret about poor Craig. I'm sorry for taking so long to post this, as there have been a couple hindrances. First one, not much motivation and extreme writers block. I feel like this wasn't good enough for you guys, and my apologies if it's not – please forgive me! ;-; I've been going through a little bit of harsh times in real life, which makes my second excuse. I'd rather not say exactly what's going on, but I will tell you that it's been damaging for me. As you can see, LM isn't here at the moment, and I wrote this chapter completely alone. (There may be mistakes, as I don't have a beta reader.)

I wanted to address the new episode as well. I watched it last night, and -hurrah!- there was Clyde in it!... But why was he hanging out with the boys instead of Token, Craig and Tweek? That made me a bit disappointed. His mom's death was also disappointing for me.. waaah.. Okay, that's all I got for you. Time for reviewer shoutout time.

**SuperDuperGir;**

**TC: **Thank you tons for your excellent review, it made me squee with joy! :3 I'm hoping it is getting better (and that this chapter wasn't a let-down), and yes, we are writing this together. However, I was the only one who did this chapter, as LM wasn't available due to personal reasons. I think she'll be back for chapter four.

**SoapyTucker;**

**TC:** Aww, thank you so much! I _hope _the mafia isn't going to get Tweek, that would just be awful. Craig would have to go and save him, being the perfect boyfriend he is.

**And thank you to the following who added this to favorites, story alert or both but didn't review: (Blah, my email is being stupid. I'm not getting notified of some of you who are favoriting/alerting this D:. That makes me a saaad panda.)**

_**BeRightThere**_

Final note to all readers and reviewers: I love you all! You're what gives me the motivation to continue Rainbow Veins. I don't know what I'd do without you. Reading what you write to me is the **best** part of my day. :)


	4. The White One Is Evil

_**Rainbow Veins**_

_Stranded; I'm guessing that she planned this  
>I've been here once before<br>You keep me running in circles  
>Can't stand it, I'm running empty handed<br>It's all a waste of time  
>I know you do it for pleasure<br>Were you sent to destroy me?  
>Look, I'm still breathing<br>I warned you, the white one is evil  
>She will kill you<em>

-Elliot Minor, _The White One Is Evil_

* * *

><p>It took Craig a couple moments to analyze what was happening. He had to take it step by step. <em>I just came home, and my father is here. Isn't he supposed to be drunk at the bar like he usually is? Why is he home now? <em>He tried to hide the fear from his eyes; There was no way he'd let his father get the advantage of knowing Craig was scared of what was to come. _My mom warned me this would happen. She even told me that he wanted to talk or some shit. Why am I not prepared?_

Craig let his eyes rest on his dad, trying to judge his mood. _Maybe it won't be so bad. _That was the initial thought. However, when he took a closer look, the raven could clearly see his dad _was _drunk out of his mind. He smelled of alcohol. And that was plain disgusting. _This is probably the worst I've ever seen him. _The fact his dad was barely conscious frightened Craig more than ever. _He won't know what damage he's doing.. When the beating comes. _Bitterly, his thoughts continued. _Not that it ever mattered how bruised I was when he was sober._

"Dad," He greeted, as indifferently as he could manage. Craig wanted to see how he would respond before he made a move.

Mr. Tucker appeared to be squinting at him, "Craig... TUCKER!" he half-yelled. The tone of his voice was faltering, one signal to Craig that he was indefinitely toasted. He sighed inwardly; Tonight would just be another blood bath... Unfortunately filled with _his _blood. It wasn't like Craig expected his dad to have any decency tonight. In fact, he had let go of what little shard of hope he had and just wanted to call his friends to hear their voice for one last time. _I'm sorry for making fun of your studying habits Token, _he planned in his mind, _and I love you Tweek. Goddammit, I do. And Clyde,well, use your imagination. _The thought brought a smirk to his face, momentarily forgetting that he was standing in front of the modern version of Adolf Hitler.

"Yes?" Craig snapped at his dad, knowing it probably wouldn't matter what he did in the long run. It would always end up the same way. It was this vicious and tedious cycle the Tuckers went through that no one could stop, so it seemed. And his dad... Mr. Tucker was the head of this cycle, making sure it was as horrific as possible.

Mr. Tucker's dark eyes glowed with fury. "Don't youspeak to me in.. -hiccup- that tone... ofvoice." He slurred, clumsily grabbing at Craig's shirt, pulling him inside of their personal Hell known as a household.

Craig Tucker was far from apologizing. Some days he might consider it, but right now, it was like he didn't care. Craig felt like he knew what was going to happen. Various death scenes played in the back of his mind. Each of them ended with something unimaginably gruesome.

Craig flicked his brown eyes to inspect his father's hand which was still gripping the hem of his shirt tightly. Craig didn't move. It wasn't that he wanted to be shoved to the floor, but more so that in an odd way, he found it amusing that his dad had to physically hold him down in order to feel like he had "power" over his son.

In an instant, Craig felt his head collide with the wall. "Faggot!" Mr. Tucker voice boomed, using his other fist to take a sloppy swing at Craig's jaw.

He saw it coming a mile away. His dad's movements were slow and unbalanced. Craig easily dodged the attempted hit, finding satisfaction in the defeat in his dad's eyes.. Though it was only there for a moment or less; It was worth it.

"I'll teach you to de...fy me!" Craig's dad yelled, splitting 'defy' by a hiccup. This time, he attempted to punch Craigs' cheek. Once more, his son swiftly moved out of the way, leaving his hand to crash into the wall.

Craig had enough. He didn't want to dodge his dad's fists for another night. The raven punched his dad in the gut, watching as he doubled over. _And now you know what I've wanted to do for my entire life. Do you feel the pain? Or are you too drunk to notice? _He taunted inside his head.

Craig knew he should have run up to his room or to Ruby to tell her everything was okay. However, there were two issues. For one, he didn't know if Ruby was home. _Dad usually sends them away beforehand... So they can't witness what he really does. _Secondly, Craig was relishing having the upper hand and wasn't going to give it up yet.

He expected his dad to hit him again. He expected another insult. He expected shouting. Craig had expected everything but _this. _Mr. Tucker's movements had stopped. Everything had been replaced with a low groan of utter pain that chilled Craig right down to the bone. It was making Craig feel unsure. _Should I help him? Walk away? Get someone else? _"Dad?" He asked, in monotone, using his foot to prod at his immobile father.

Craig bit his lip. It wasn't because he was nervous though, he was just wondering what he should do with his dad that looked lifeless. _He can't honestly be dead. _He thought, examining his dad, _he would never die until I'm buried in the backyard._

"Dad," Craig said, sharply. He leaned down, searching his dad for a pulse that was quickly found. _I should have known. Of course you wouldn't die on me. _Mr. Tucker was passed out, presumably from alcohol consumption is what Craig decided. "Fuck you, dad." Craig snarled, flipping his father off before walking towards the staircase.

_Now to see if Ruby and mom are home. _He stopped in the hallway leading to the bedrooms. The picture that hung on the wall seemed to stick out more than ever. It was one of Craig's personal favorites, though he had tons of pictures of them together. But this particular photo was special.

Craig walked over to it, running a thumb along the brass border that looked brand new. His heart got lighter as he examined the scene. It was his family, actually being a _family _for once in his miserable lifetime. Ruby was smiling. She couldn't have been more than seven years old, holding a pail of beach sand with a shovel, next to a large sand castle.

Mom sat next to her, arms wrapped around Ruby's shoulders in a loving embrace. Craig missed _that _mom. The one who wouldn't back down to bigots like Thomas Tucker and would stand up for hers kids instead. _But I lost that mom and I'm stuck with this beaten down housewife who barely notices she has kids._ _I miss you, mom._

He looked at himself in the picture. As per usual, eleven year old Craig was flipping off the camera, a deadpan expression set on his face. To anyone who wasn't at the beach that day, they'd think this "boy in the blue chullo" was having a terrible time.

That wasn't true.

Craig had loved that day. He didn't know he would love it the day he was actually there, but after he did a little growing and the abuse starting, Craig realized that may have very well been elected as his best day ever with his family.

And then he gazed at Mr. Tucker. His dad looked much younger and healthier back then. In those days, he wouldn't come home, swaying mindlessly and mumbling incoherent things. This was one of the few pictures they had of Thomas Tucker _smiling. _Or, attempting a smile, at least. _He tried. I wonder if it's possible that this is the _only _picture we own of our dad trying to smile. _

Craig sighed gruffly, being brought back from his wandering thoughts. "Ruby?" He called, followed by, "Mom?" No response. _It must be one of those times were dad thinks he can hide the violence by sending them to go get ice cream or whatever the hell they do while I'm getting the shit beaten out of me. _Ruby was far from ignorant. She knew exactly when Craig was getting hurt. The part she didn't know was just how badly and Craig had sworn to himself that he'd keep it from her.

He walked into his bedroom, locking the door behind him. Craig was in a complete death trap. First, there was his dad. A consistent problem that either meant appeasing him by breaking up with Tweek or getting my guts splattered all around the floor. _Tweek means the world to me. If that means I'm signing up for execution, so be it. _Then there was Bebe. _Doesn't she see that I don't want to be around her? I guess I haven't come right out and said it... But ...god damn it Tucker, you need to come up with something. If you don't, Tweek might find out and then I'll be in hot water all over again._

Craig flopped down on his bed. _If stress really does give you wrinkles, I'm going to turn into a fucking prune._

* * *

><p>Clyde started blankly at the television. Rex, his gray dog, sat beside him, taking a nap. He didn't even know what show was on; He just <em>watched. <em>Reflected colors danced on his face, making him into a light show that he could never see.

His hands found their way into Rex's soft fur, stroking it lightly with no mind attached to the action. This wasn't how Clyde planned to spend his evening nor was it _normal _for the brunette to spend an evening like this.

Clyde would be out taking his dog for a walk... Or making popcorn and throwing in a movie. Maybe talking to Craig and joking about how awful their school cafeteria food was. But his favorite nights of all were the ones he spent with T- _Token._ He thought, being dragged back to his current dilemma.

_It feels like Token and I are fighting but without any words, making it worse. He just seems to want to ignore me and never want to do things anymore. It's like he doesn't even want to touch me! _Clyde had often wondered if he was plain disgusting in his boyfriend's eyes. _He won't kiss me. _Clyde thought, shamefully. It was true that Token and Clyde hadn't so much as kissed yet. _It's not my fault, is it? He's the one that's always shying away. _

Clyde had done everything he could to make Token feel comfortable. _Hell, I haven't pressured him in the least. _He thought, dignified. _Token just refuses to let our relationship grow. _It was no secret that Clyde was becoming frustrated with his lack of being touched. Clyde was a touchy-feely hands-on type of person. _And if Token can't give me that, then... well, maybe we should just break up. After all, he's the one that thinks I'm revolting._

Clyde slid into a laying position, on his side and facing the blaring television. _What do I do? Do I dare to ask him if he wants to do anything this weekend? For God's sake, it's fucking Friday. Why am I sitting home alone with nothing to do and hoping he'll call me? That's never going to happen. All my friends call me "not the brightest bulb" and that might be true but I am Clyde Donovan and I will _not _fucking wait around for _him _to call _me. _I have better things to do._

"Like what, Clyde?" He whimpered to himself, serving as a reminder that most of his plans were rejected by Token. "I can have fun by myself. I can.. Uh, ask Craig to do stuff instead." Clyde snarled back, waking up Rex.

"Clyde, who are you talking to?" Mr. Donovan called from in the kitchen.

"Nobody," Clyde lied, grabbing for the remote to change the channel. He flipped through them until finding a show that always cheered the brunette up: Law and Order, Special Victims Unit.

Clyde was just getting comfy when the phone rang, causing Rex to nearly fall off the couch. He patted his dogs head as comfortingly as he could manage without tearing his eyes away from the TV. "Dad, the phone is ringing." He yelled into the kitchen. The ringing was disrupting _his _TV time.

One of the characters on the show had been arrested for doing drugs illegally. That gave Clyde an idea. _Drugs. I'll be doing weed soon.. But what does Token have to do? Okay, so he may be a little bitch about doing homework and not goofing off but what does he have to lose? His parents are fucking millionaires and he's a straight A student. Can't he spare to do a little weed?_

_ And if only I can convince him to do it. Then he'll get high and then, SHAZAM! Token won't mind kissing me if he's _high. Clyde's brain was on a roll. If Token wasn't going to kiss him in his right mind, _I'll drug him._

"I need the phone," Clyde demanded, hurriedly getting off the couch and running over to his father. "Hurry up." The brunette snapped, frowning.

Mr. Donovan glared, "You have a cell phone." He mouthed, then returned to his call.

_Oh right. Cell phone! _Clyde over to the front door, where his backpack had been dropped carelessly over an hour ago. He removed it from the small pouch in one of the backpack's many compartments, unlocking the screen of his iPhone.

Clyde instantly searched the address book until finding 'Token:)' and pressing call. The ringing made him anxious. _What if he's not home? Is he cheating on me? Maybe that's why he doesn't want to kiss. Or what if he doesn't even like m-_

"Hello?" Token's voice answered.

Clyde was overly excited to ask his boyfriend about this and had no planned approach. "You know how, um, Craig had weed? Do you want to come with and do it? I mean it will be really fun and I'd love for you to go-"

Token cut him off, "Isn't that dangerous?"

"-with me so-.. wait, dangerous? Obviously if you get addicted but it's not _that _addictive.." He carried on, nervous now that Token was bringing up the "bad side" of things.

"But you _can _get addicted, Clyde." It sounded more like a warning than a fact, coming from Token. He was like the mother hen of Clyde, Craig and Tweek. _Quit being a negative Nancy. Can't you see this is a chance for us to do something together? Please?_

"But Token," Clyde whined into the receiver, now pacing on his living room floor, "_please. _I mean, I want to do something with you this weekend! Isn't that what couples do?" He was getting more desperate each second that passed by. _He's going to say no. Token's going to reject me again. He's fucking avoiding me!_

Clyde could hear Token sigh, "Clyde, please don't do it. I don't want you to get addicted or ..I don't know. With drugs, bad things happen, okay? I don't want to do the marijuana because that means I'd have no power saying _you _shouldn't do it. It's bad for you."

_I can make my own decisions, thank you. _He wanted to say, but Clyde wanted to keep his cool. _If I lose my cool, I don't know what Token will do. Apparently he's disappointed in me but doesn't see that he's the one that could prevent me from doing this. All he needs to do is say, "Hey Clyde, instead of doing drugs, how about we hang out in your pool?" But no. That won't ever happen. How did I end up with a boyfriend like this? One that won't put a hand on me when I want him to?_

"Can we do something this weekend?" Clyde asked, attempting to change the subject. There was no point in fighting with Token over weed, it wasn't worth it. _I shouldn't have expected him to go, being the nerd he is. _The brunette thought bitterly.

"I-... My schedule is pretty packed this weekend..." Token trailed off, seeming to want some sort of escape route out of the question.

Clyde was fucking pissed. _If you cared about me, you wouldn't keep ignoring me! _"Too busy studying? Or- let me guess,spending your time pretending we aren't dating at all!"

"Clyde, don't be that way-"

"Don't be that way?" Clyde blew up. "DON'T BE THAT WAY? WHAT WAY? _YOU'RE THE ONE IGNORING ME!_" He shouted into the phone, not giving a flying fuck if his dad overheard or not. "Let me add that if you _cared, _you would be trying harder to keep me on the "right track" as you call it. But you're not." Clyde was seething. His body shuddered from the anger pent up. The line remained quiet so Clyde spoke again, "It's like we aren't even dating anymore, Token. We never were! You act like we're just friends. For God's sake, you won't fucking _kiss _me! I'm not asking you to have sex with me or marry me but why can't you at least kiss me?" Clyde hadn't meant to say _that. _But he did, and there was no taking it back.

"I didn't know you felt that way, Clyde. But all the same, _no _I don't want to do weed with you." Token responded, calmly. _It's not just about the weed. Can't you see that? It's about us, not doing drugs in Craig's basement._

"Well you do now." Clyde snapped, hitting the 'end call' button on his Android, placing it on the coffee table. He hadn't meant to sound so evil. That wasn't the plan. _I was supposed to be under control, and look what I've done. I'm sorry, Token. ...No. I don't feel sorry for you. You deserved every word. Every word filled with bitterness from me, they were all because of you._

"Why can't he fucking love me?" Clyde groaned, throwing himself down onto the couch. He buried his head in his hands. _I told him everything. So what? Simple words will never change anything._

* * *

><p>Tweek paced, reviewing the horrible things that could happen to you if you did weed. There was no way the blonde could deny it, he was scared as hell. <em>People always told me drugs were bad for you in every way. Jesus, the health class teacher thought I was into drugs back in 7<em>_th__ grade, so if people who do drugs end up like me.. Then what will I become? Oh God!_

He let out a startled squeak as someone knocked on his bed room door. "Tweek, can I come in?" Came his dad's voice.

"Sure," Tweek replied unsteadily. _How does my dad know I'm thinking about doing drugs? Is he a mind reader? Fuck, what else does he know about? _His mind spun a million miles per hour.

Richard Tweak smiled at his frantic son, "You're going to wear a hole in your carpet, son. How about a nice, refreshing cup of coffee? Imagine you're hanging onto the edge of a steep cliff; This coffee will be your hand to safety. It'll be your umbrella on a rainy day. Your-"

"GAH!" _Not the metaphors! _"I g-get it, dad! And.. -ERGH- okay, I'll stop." _At least he isn't a mind reader. _Tweek thought, taking a seat on his soft bed. "Can you bring me the coffee?" he asked, raising his eyes from the floor to meet his dad's.

"Of course," Mr. Tweak nodded, gently closing the door behind him. Tweek exhaled, trying to release the stress over doing drugs for the first time. _Craig will be there. He will make sure nothing __happens to me. _Tweek bit his bottom lip out of nervous habit. _But what if something does go wrong and Craig isn't there to save me? What if killers show up and none of us can fend them off? Oh Jesus! _His parents already knew about tomorrow night. Not that Tweek was to be smoking marijuana, but he had told them he'd be over at Craig's house and spending the night. _There's no way I'm coming home stoned, then they'd probably force me to break up with him. _

A rap sounded on the door, similar to the first. The door opened a crack, and he could see his father placing a coffee mug inside of his room, and then leaving. _He must know I'm distressed. I wonder if he's going to send mom up to talk to me. Or worse... What if he calls and schedules an emergency therapist session? I haven't had those since I was sixteen!_

Tweek couldn't take it anymore. He _needed _that coffee. It was his lifeline at a moment of a stressful breakdown such as this one. He sipped the liquid, enjoying the just-right warmth it spread throughout his mouth. The chocolatey caramel flavor sent his senses into pure bliss. _Mmm, _Tweek thought, entranced by the sensation.

_Maybe I should just talk to Craig about it? I'll ...I'll back out! He'll understand, right? _Tweek thought, smiling to himself. _Craig will be okay with just Kenny and Clyde.. No Tweek, you can't back out now! Not when Bebe is trying to steal Craig away from me. _He slammed his coffee mug down onto his nightstand, involuntarily spurting his thoughts, "C-Craig … Oh God! If I back out, h-he might -ACK- ask Bebe to g-go instead of _me_!" the blonde clamped a hand over his mouth. _Hush! _He mentally scolded himself for losing control. _Should I talk to Craig anyway? He will know what to do._

Tweek shakily picked up his cell phone, dialing the numbers. He didn't have anything fancy like what Craig, Clyde and Token had. Token had offered to buy him a touch screen one, but he had said no. _With my always-vibrating hands? I couldn't handle that! Jesus! _Tweek was brought back to Earth by hearing Craig's voice repeatedly saying "hello?".

"Oh, u-um, Craig!" he greeted, unprepared, "Hi."

"Hey Tweek," Craig replied nasally without showing any emotion.

Tweek chewed his fingernail with growing anxiety, "S-so.. What are you doing?" he asked, as casually as the blonde could manage. _Please be in a good mood, Craig. What if he hangs up on me because he thinks I'm lame? Fuck! Quick, think of something better to say, Tweek.._

Craig answered with the same casualness, "Playing with Stripe." Tweek was smart enough to know that Craig's guinea pig made him happy and that meant he'd be dealing "good mood Craig". _Does that mean I should back out? Gah! Too much pressure.. What should I do? I don't want to have my boyfriend stolen by Bebe! She was already flirting with him earlier; Does Craig love her back? Is he just using me? Craig wouldn't use me, would he? What if I'm just "another dead romance" to him like all those girls in middle school were?_

"Tweek?" Craig snapped, breaking his boyfriend's train of thoughts for a second time.

"-NGH!- Sorry!" he squeaked, embarrassed and blushing. "How's Stripe?" Tweek deemed that to be a safe question. _There was nothing wrong with asking how Stripe was, right?_

"Fine; The same." Craig paused momentarily, "Is there any reason you called?" Tweek's heart pounded. Craig knew him too well to think that he called up just for a conversation. The blonde never called unless the gnomes were taking his underpants or some other emergency. Usually, he'd show up at Craig's house instead of using a phone to talk.

"No! W-well... kind of.. M- Yes," Tweek sputtered out, caught off guard by Craig's directness. _He hates it when I beat around the bush.._

He could hear nothing from Craig's end. It was dead silent.

Craig finally spoke, "Tweekers," he began softly, "Tell me what's on your mind." _This is why I love him. He doesn't get mad at me for being paranoid or bitchy sometimes or on my period as Clyde says. Nobody sees this side of him. No one but me, Token and Clyde. _Tweek felt an immense sense of pride from knowing something about Craig that Bebe didn't... _yet. _He reminded himself gravely.

"It's... -ERGH- the whole marijuana ...thing," Tweek confessed, ashamed of his fear.

He heard Craig chuckle and it made his heart feel lighter. _If only he knew the effect that small laugh had on me, _Tweek daydreamed. "You don't have to," Craig reminded him gently, "but I can assure you I won't let anything happen."

"N-no! I _want _to smoke weed with you but.. I... I'm nervous." Tweek said the word "weed" lowly, praying his parents wouldn't hear and question him. They weren't the sharpest tools in the shed, so the blonde didn't fret over it.

The chuckle sounded again, "Don't be. I promise nothing bad will happen to you. I'll be there the whole time, Tweek." The words eased his mind. The tone of Craig's voice and his words combined and made something in his brain rest.

"You're sure?" Tweek asked, wanting to triple-check. _I just have a bad feeling about doing drugs_

"Absolutely," Craig reassured him strongly, "It's okay to say "no", just remember that. I don't want you to think you have to do this to make me happy." That statement made his heart soar but feel weighted down at the same time. _It's not that I want to please you.. But I can't give Bebe the chance to replace me._

"On Thursday," Tweek began, unsure if he should be bringing this up or not. _Craig can't strangle you over the phone. He wouldn't kill you even if he wanted to._

Before he could finish his sentence, Craig spoke first, "What about Thursday?"

"You and C-Cartman... Didn't you -GAH!- get into a fight over s-something?" He was lying through his teeth; Tweek knew what that "something" was. This is how he knew something was up with Bebe. The facts clicked in his head. Thursday, Tweek had heard the name 'Bebe' be exchanged a few times in the forming crowd by Cartman and his boyfriend. _Are they fighting over Bebe? If they are, then I'm too late.._

"Yeah," Craig started hesitantly, "I think I remember that." _Quit playing around, Craig! _Craig never "thought he remembered". He knew or he didn't, it was that simple.

He moved onto a second question, this time with more confidence. _If Craig isn't going to open up to me about this, then he's forcing me to pry for answers. _"W-what was it about?" the blonde asked breezily, trying not to sound that interested.

"You know that fatass," Craig laughed, and Tweek sensed a hint of anxiety radiating from it. _I made Craig nervous? This must really be bad. _"always trying to start shit that makes no sense with me.."

"I heard s-something about Bebe?" he mentioned, wanting a clear answer. Not these half-assed ones that Craig was supplying him with, hoping he'd buy into it.

Craig didn't hesitate, "You heard something about Bebe?" he repeated, "Oh, fuck, do you know what number six is on the math homework?"

_I'm not that stupid. I may be the spazzy twitch ball, but I am _not _a complete idiot. What are you trying to hide from me? _"You know I'm bad at m-math. -ERGH!-" _Why did he bother asking? He's the fucking teacher's assistant and he has all weekend to figure it out._

"Yeah, uh, I'm just stuck on that one," he explained quickly, "Damn, sorry Tweek, I really need to get this done. I'll talk to you tomorrow, bye." And the line went dead. _Did he seriously hang up on me? What the fuck, Craig? Only Token would ditch friends to work on homework and he hasn't done that in years. You tell me to be honest about what's on my mind but you're lying to me!_

He felt awful about asking what was with Bebe and Cartman. _Don't I have a right to know if my own boyfriend is cheating on me? _Tweek wanted to cry; And that's exactly what he did.

* * *

><p>Craig ran his hands through his jet black hair in disappointment with himself. <em>How could I do that to Tweek.. Do I need to call him back? I couldn't; I can't give him the chance to ask anything else about Bebe.<em>

He flipped himself off for being such a pussy.

Craig dialed Clyde's number. _He's not the best person to go to for advice, but my options are fairly limited here. _He killed time by mindlessly drawing circles in his open sketchbook, waiting for his best friend to pick up the phone.

It went to Clyde's voicemail which never failed to pissed Craig off, "You've reached the Dono-man, leave me a message after the beep and I'll call you back if you're hot."

"Fuck you, Clyde," Craig growled into the phone, "call me. We need to talk." He locked his phone, picking up Stripe who was gnawing on a pencil. Craig pushed back the chair and left his desk, carefully placing Stripe into his cage. "I would talk to you," he said gently, "but you don't ever give me feedback." With that, he returned to his desk, making more random scribbles of shapes in his sketchbook.

"You Ain't Nothin' But A Hound Dog" by Elvis Presley began playing, informing Craig that Clyde was returning his call. "Clyde?" he asked.

Clyde sounded impatient, "What did you need?"

Craig remembered Clyde's voicemail. "So you think I'm hot?"

Clyde was quiet for a moment, "Well.. You do have a nice ass-"

"Stop. I don't want to hear anymore," he cut Clyde off, not wanting to waste time. Ruby and his mom could come home at any minute. Ruby probably wouldn't leave him alone if she had nothing better to do.

"Whatever you say, man," Clyde seemed to brush it off, "Now what did you want?"

"Damn, you're being a little bitch tonight. I think Tweek knows." Craig said, sighing. "What should I do?"

He could hear chewing, "Wot does Tweek know?" Clyde questioned with his mouth full. _There's the Clyde I know. The one who speaks with his mouth filled with food._

"That's fucking disgusting, Clyde. I hope you don't eat on the phone with anyone else; They'd probably end up puking their guts out afterward. But back on topic, _Tweek _knows about _Bebe_!" he hissed, feeling more guilty by the second. _I did do the right thing, right? The bullying needed to stop sometime and it's not like you can tattle on Eric Cartman when you're Craig fucking Tucker._

"So he knows that you and her fucked." Clyde confirmed bluntly.

"Yes," he said, "Well.. I don't know. He didn't come out and say it but he kept asking questions. I don't know what to do and you know I'm desperate since I'm asking _you._"

Clyde protested in whiny voice, "Hey, I'm good at giving advice! Oh and just tell him. He's going to find out some way or another and you might as well be the one to break the news."

"It's not like I cheated on him!" Craig snapped, "I did it for his own good."

"I don't see how it was for his _own good._" It felt like Clyde was mocking him, _is he trying to piss me off? _"You didn't have to screw Bebe to get a point across."

"Yes, I _fucking do_! We aren't talking about a normal human being here. We're talking about Eric Cartman." _And he is the most stubborn and thickheaded person in the universe next to Tweek. The only difference is when Tweek is being stubborn, it's more adorable. When Cartman does it, that just makes me want to punch him._

"No, you really didn't have to do that. Like I said, you're the one responsible for telling Tweek," Clyde continued, "and you should do it soon. I still don't think you did the right thing, bro."

"I don't need your approval Clyde." Craig snarled. _Why am I so mad at Clyde? Why am I taking my anger out on him? He doesn't deserve it.. I should be mad at myself, because maybe my best friend's right. I shouldn't have gone that far with this whole ordeal._

"Whatever," Clyde deadpanned. _I thought you were _supposed _to be supportive here, Clyde._

Craig had it. "Yeah, _whatever_." He mocked Clyde's tone, and then hung up on someone for the second time that night.

_What have I turned into and what have I done to Tweek? Fuck you, Tucker, this _is _all your fault._

He flipped himself off again.

* * *

><p><strong> Author's Note:<strong>

**TC: **Third Chance

**LM:**LilxMomo

**TC: **So.. I'm making LM read My Immortal, possibly the worst fanfiction in history. :P

**LM: **i love this story. It's not a punishment if I get to make you blush. I'm learning so much. ^^ Look, it says, "He had a sexy English accent." Too bad she never met Pip.

**TC: **Everyone knows Pip is French. Anyway, we both neglected our homework for you guys to finish this. That's how much we love you all. We both know that everything kinda hit the fan but it'll get better.

**wickedthunder02;**

**TC: **When LM read your review, she thought you said Craig was an asshole and the initial reaction was, "You're an asshole!" given that she writes Craig's dialogue.

**LM: **;-; You're going to embarrass me.

**TC: **I'm sorry D:. Back to the reviewer, we love you and LM certainly does not think you're an asshole. I agree though, Craig's dad is a prick. Thanks for your review; That was so sweet! :)

**And thank you to the following who added this to favorites, story alert or both but didn't review:**

**_Karou's-Anthem_**

**_powderfaith_**

**_powerpuffs621_**

**Enjoy the update, review if you have time, please! We read them all and will respond. :)**

**TC:** I just found out that tomorrow is National Pot Day (Friday the 20th) or something like that. Heehee.


	5. Tripping Down The Freeway

_**Rainbow Veins**_

_No way, we ain't gonna break up  
>We made a promise and our will won't fade out<br>Not just in oh-eight and oh-nine  
>we'll be together from now until the end of time<br>you got the Shirley Appleby look  
>I'm totally caught up in your hook<br>You know that we are gonna be okay  
>We'll stick together as we're trippin' down the freeway<em>

-Weezer, _Tripping Down The Freeway_

* * *

><p>Tweek was tempted to text Craig and tell him that he was feeling sick today. He didn't want to go to school; He didn't want to talk to <em>Craig. <em>Or, "his boyfriend" if someone would go so far as to call him that. Craig had been a complete douche bag over the weekend, whether it was intentional or not.

It was Monday and the weed was never done, first of all. It got "rescheduled" thanks to Craig's dad. Tweek couldn't deny that he was a tinge worried about Craig, praying that he wasn't seriously injured.. But at the same time, he wanted to hold a grudge for pumping him up to do this and then backing out. _That's complete bullshit. Things are just getting weirder and more secretive with Craig these days. _He groaned. The suspicions about Bebe and Craig returned head-on.

Now Tweek _really _didn't want to go to school. Mondays sucked, but this one was ten times worse because he was pissy with Craig and hated Bebe with all his heart for trying to steal him. _What if this was some elaborate plan to get me to break up with Craig so he didn't have to do it?_

As much as he knew he'd regret this choice, he hauled himself out of bed. Tweek had been basically M.I.A. for the entire weekend, never once talking to anyone besides his parents. He didn't even go down to the coffee shop to work. _Even though I don't get paid for i__t.. Does that make it a volunteer job? Maybe a messed up internship? But I do all the things a regular employee would. Jesus Christ, this is complicated._

A horn honk came from outside his house. "Shit!" He cursed, slipping his favorite t-shirt, hoodie over said garment, and completing the outfit with his signature skinny jeans. He pulled his phone from where it was laying on the nightstand, texting Craig to wait a minute. Tweek didn't wait for a response; Instead, he be lined it to the bathroom to brush his teeth.

Squirting a small amount of his special toothpaste, the sensitivity kind, onto his red toothbrush, he scrubbed at his teeth ferociously. _I can't be late! What if he leaves without me? Would Craig do that? Can he read minds and tell that I'm mad__ at him so he gets mad at me and won't drive me to school anymore so I have to walk and I'll freeze to death out in the snow and no one will remember me and I won't be found! _That thought sent him into panic mode, spitting and rinsing his mouth. He threw his messenger bag over his shoulder, scurrying out into the cold, not bothering to lock the door.

He threw himself inside of Craig's blue corvette, letting his bag rest on his lap. After sparing a glance at the clock, he scowled. They were early. "Why did you c-come so early?" Tweek snapped, an icy tone covering the question, making it more malicious than he'd originally intended.

"Tweek," Craig started, sounding on edge. _It's as if he was afraid to open his mouth. Did something happen to him? Oh God, what if__ this is the breakup? I need to get out of here! _Before Craig could finish, Tweek reached for the handle of the door, but wasn't fast enough. He heard the locks click and Craig staring at him intently. "Really? You didn't even let me finish." The blond looked down in shame.

"Then continue," he murmured, not meeting Craig's eyes for this horrible moment of being broken up with. _There's no one else that will ever date me. I'm just a freak to people; A twitchy, spazzy, freak. One that society would rather i__gnore the existence of._

"I was going to apologize," Craig began, "I've been a total asshole lately. Like canceling plans and.. I don't know. Just-.. Damn, I'm sorry, Tweek." This was a surprise to him. It wasn't what he was expecting at all, and he was tempted to tackle Craig and tell him how sorry _he _was. _I should have trusted Craig when he said he'd never leave me. How could I be so insecure? _Tweek didn't know what to do. _How can I be mad at him after that? He _did _postpone the weed.. but that actually h__elped me. In a way. I got more time to think about it. _"Please say something." His boyfriend begged him, brown eyes shifting with uncertainty.

Tweek bit his lower lip, "I'm s-sorry too. I thought you were gonna break up -ACK- with me or something and I was really s-scared.. You bailed on me, so then I thought y-you were avoiding me and-" He was silenced as Craig's lips met his. The blond melted into the kiss, keeping it soft and gentle. It was one of those "so we're both forgiven" kisses that always happened after talking things through.

He pulled away, finally noticing the change in his heartbeat. _Craig has that effect on me.. I don't know how he does it. _"I love you." Tweek murmured, meeting Craig's beautiful brown eyes. They had a light tint, something that reminded the blonde of coffee every time he saw them.

"Oh, Tweekers," Craig cupped Tweek's cheeks, "I love you too." Tweek watched Craig, marveling at how much emotion he could fit into a sentence. _He makes me feel special when no one else cares __to._

_ Would it be a good idea to ask him about Bebe now? He can't throw me out of his car.. right? I don't know why he wouldn't tell me.. He _just _said that he loved and wasn't going to break up with me. _"Hey, C-Craig?" He asked as Craig turned to face the road ahead. _Shit! Why did I do that? I don't know what I should say? 'Just by chance, are you cheating on me?' That sounds terrible._

"Hmm?" Craig hummed in response. _Oh God, what should I do? I need to make something up and fast. There's no way I'm bring__ing up Bebe, even if I do want to know. Craig would probably get mad at me and _then _breakup with me. _"Everything okay?" Tweek hadn't noticed he was pulling frantically at his hair until Craig questioned it.

"Yeah," he nodded, forcing his hands to rest loosely at his sides. _If I don't act calm -or normal- he'll definitely know something is up. _"Um.. I just w-wanted you to know that I..." He trailed off, not knowing where to go with this. "I.. don't want to ever b-break up."

Craig smiled at this. _This boy __was the greatest thing that ever happened to me, _Tweek thought, hoping they wouldn't ever break up. What he said was true. ..But not what he wanted to say. _Please __don't fall in love with Bebe, I'd lose everything._

"Tweekers," Craig called, causing the blonde to snap out of his daze and look at his boyfriend. _Oh Jesus! He must have figured out that I wanted to say something else and now he's going to make me say it! Then we're going to break up and it will be all my fault because I partially lied and I'll __spend the rest of my days trying to find another person as sweet as Craig. _"You're special to me. I wouldn't ever let you go." _Or that._

The confession brought a smile to the blonde's face. "You're special t-too." He murmured back, twisting to put his hand on the dashboard and leaned over to Craig. He took this opportunity to give Craig a simple kiss, just a quick peck on the lips. His comment was deemed worthy of one.

The small action got Craig to reflect Tweek's smile. _It was well worth it. _Getting Craig Tucker to smile and show _any _emotion was a huge feat, and his close friends were the only ones that could accomplish said task.

"Ready to go to school?" Craig asked, hands running along the steering wheel, "Or want to make out?"

Tweek might have preferred the latter, however he knew that school came first. _We can make out later. _He promised his boyfriend mentally. "School. N-not that I want to. I'd much rather stay here a-and make out in the backseat." Tweek watched as Craig chuckled softly, buckling his seat belt. The blonde did the same, momentarily forgetting he could get in a car crash if proper safety wasn't present. Tweek had a tendency to forget around Craig; He was an excellent driver and for some reason actually _liked _driving. ...Tweek didn't. It required concentration and the ability to stay calm. _And neither of which do I have._

The blonde leaned back in his seat. _I can do this. I can last another day of Bebe without overreacting and bitching at Craig. I'll bring it up when the time is r__ight.. and that time will obviously not be now. When I do confront him, I'll be casual about it. _Tweek planned in his head, wanting everything to go as smoothly as possible. _Remember Tweek, you don't know what's going on between those two. Craig might or m__ight not be cheating on you; You can't jump to conclusions. _He was trying his hardest not to freak out. If he did, the hair tugging and involuntary noises would begin and that meant explaining what was bothering him to Craig. _Unacceptable._

He peeked a green eye open just in time to see Clyde's house up in the distance. The brunette stood leaning against his mailbox, kicking up some dirt with his dark red converse. He looked bored. _Clyde's rarely bored. I always see him having a good time with Rex or on th__e phone with Token.. Or run outside because he's afraid Craig will leave him behind. _Which Craig did once. Clyde had been "too slow" that morning, and he had to walk to South Park High alternatively. Clyde hadn't been impressed with his bro's antics.

Clyde had called him yesterday, on Sunday. The phone call was spent either complaining about Craig avoiding his friends or explaining how Token was being a douche. He was especially pissed after Craig canceled their plans due to Mr. Tucker. Tweek was hoping Clyde got over it like he did everything else. He was good at letting the past go.

Too bad "letting it go" didn't seem like the approach Clyde Donovan was going to take. He _glared _at Craig's corvette like the car was to blame before stiffly walking towards it. _Please don't fight. __Fight when I'm not around. _Bro fights were not cool to witness; Especially when they were between Craig and Clyde. That meant screaming, sometimes punching on Clyde's part and an exchange of hurtful words.

Tweek was hoping Clyde would just stay quiet until they could go battle it out in a bathroom or something. No such luck. "Hey," Clyde stated, smiling, "way to blow off your friends." Clyde had said it like a joke, however everyone in the car knew he was dead serious.

"I thought friends were supposed to be understanding." Craig replied blandly, continuing on the way to school. There was no evil behind his words and Tweek guessed he didn't want to fight with Clyde. Craig liked things anti-drama, and drama was what his bro was all about.

"Friends?" Clyde snapped maliciously, "_Friends_ don't back out on each other." _But he had to, Clyde. Do you _want _his dad to beat him to death or something? And oh god! If we did come over, we might have been killed too.._

Craig sighed heavily. "There was nothing I could do. My dad is horrible when he's drunk." Tweek sat silently, waiting for the storm to pass. There was nothing he could add to make the situation better and it would most likely egg Clyde on at best.

"You need to learn to stand up to him; You're like his bitch. Just kidding." Clyde retorted nastily.

Craig's brown eyes narrowed at the statement. _We all know what game you're playing, Clyde. "Just kidding" doesn't make it alright to say. _"I'm like his bitch." The niorette repeated slowly, his anger and frustration apparent in the sentence.

Clyde didn't lay off, "Grow some balls, dude." After a moment's pause, he added "just kidding".

"I should say the same to you, mister I-cry-at-every-single-goddamn-movie. Oh, just kidding, though." Craig growled. _Clyde better stop soon. If he can't see that Craig's about to rip his head off, then he's more of an idiot than I thought._

"Don't try to change the subject." Clyde growled right back. He was one of the only people who could stand up to Craig Tucker and have a _chance _of winning the argument. This was how their bro fights usually went and Tweek just wanted it to end. "I can't believe you'd do that to us. I could be hanging out with other people, but _no _you tell everybody at last minute that you can't."

Craig didn't seem to be at all phased when Tweek stole a look at him. The blonde was trying desperately to keep up with the argument but not get involved. "There was nothing I could do; I didn't have a choice." Craig repeated, eerily calm compared to Clyde's hissy fit.

"You do have a choice. You're fucking eighteen. So grow up." Clyde didn't bother to add a 'just kidding' to that one. He was seething in the backseat. _He doesn't have to deal with an emotionally and physically abusive __parent.. How could you, Clyde? Bitch at Craig like that?_

"You're right," Craig replied, sounding as if he was just trying to appease Clyde for the time being. This was Craig's way of dealing with fights; Let the other person win and occasionally get revenge later. "I do need to grow up."

Clyde looked less satisfied than before Craig had "admitted" he was wrong. "Fuck you, man. I was trying to work this out." Craig tilted open the mirror, keeping one hand on the steering wheel. He focused it at Clyde, and flipped off the mirror. Clyde narrowed his dark eyes in response, but kept his mouth shut. _At least he has enough sense to do that._

The ride continued on for what seemed like a million years. _It never took that long to get to school before. _The car had gone silent and Tweek's occasional ticks were the only disruption.

The blonde shut the corvette's door behind him, suppressing a rather large sigh. _I hope Clyde and Craig work things out soon. Who knows what would happen to my friends if they fought all__ the time? I might have to join Stan's group again.. Oh Jesus! _A comforting arm wrapped around Tweek's shoulders, and he looked up to see a smiling Craig. _It amazes me how quickly Craig can push the argument aside and move on. I guess that's how he was abl__e to date the entire girl population in our grade._

"Hey Craig." he murmured, feeling more defeated than ever.

Craig looked confused, "Everything alright?" Tweek didn't respond right away. The pair walked up to the main building in a peaceful quiet. Clyde had rushed away and he was probably halfway to his locker by now.

"I h-hate when my friends fight." Tweek responded. _If only I could have stopped it from happening. What if they don't make up?_

His boyfriend chuckled at this, "I wouldn't worry, Tweekers. Clyde and I always fight. We get our act together in the end."

_I know you guys do. But what if this time is different? _"P-promise?" He squeaked softly, offering a sad excuse for a smile in return.

"Definitely," Craig nodded, reassuring the blonde, "Clyde can't hold a grudge. He fucking sucks at it." They walked into the school, just in time to see Bebe's group disperse after a couple stares. _Do I look funny today? ..Oh wait, I always look funny. I twitch and make random noises. On top of that, I ca__n barely button my shirt. _But these stares bothered Tweek. It was their senior year; He knew these kids since third grade, at least. They had gotten used to his quirks over time and the staring ceased.

They turned down the hallway, heading to where both their lockers were located. More people stared. Tweek's cheeks were dusted a light pink, not being able to figure out what was wrong with them. Craig had removed his arm, knowing Tweek didn't like PDA.. but that couldn't be the problem. Everyone knew they were dating and had grown to accept that as well.

_Is it something else? Did Clyde already start nasty rumors about us? I don't think I can handle that.. it's way too much pressure! Or worse? Could it be that Bebe and Craig are dating behind my back and B__ebe told everybody?_

There was one other time Tweek had received stares like this. It was the time that Craig told everyone they were dating. _By the next day, everybody in school knew. Even a few of the teachers. They gave me weird glances, like "what the__ hell is wrong with this kid?". It's not like I was the _one _gay guy.. __Butters is bi, but nobody cared about him. Clyde is bi, too. _Tweek had come to the conclusion that it was because girls could no longer throw themselves at Craig Tucker. _I could deal wit__h the stares. They lasted a week, tops. Then the teasing began. No other kids but Eric Cartman teased me about being openly gay except him. _The blonde had never found out why he suddenly stopped; But he had a conclusion for that too. Tweek had decided the school board most likely overheard and put an end to it. Principal Victoria didn't stand for bullying, no matter what the case.

"Um.. p-people.. are staring," he whispered to Craig urgently. _How do I make it stop? _Is what Tweek _wanted _to ask, but he didn't like it when other people knew it bothered him. That would cause him to be a more susceptible target to the crowd.

Craig shrugged, "Just ignore it." He whispered back, his voice taking on the calm tone as he had in the car with Clyde.

Tweek focused only on unlocking his locker. _Just ignore it. _He repeated in his head. _Come on Tweek, keep it together.. you don't want to have another breakdown. _The locker clicked and he rapidly stuffed his backpack inside, gathering the materials he would need for History.

As the blonde shut his locker, he saw Token walking up to them. He passed Tweek, stopping at Craig who was organizing his notebooks. "Hey man," Token greeted, tapping his friend lightly on the shoulder. _Token never does "bro-hugs" like Clyde. B__ut I guess that's a good thing; Sometimes they hurt really bad when he does them to me. _"you're wanted in the office. They announced it over the loudspeaker like three minutes ago."

Tweek swore his face paled. Eric Cartman was nowhere to be seen; Were they both in trouble? Craig simply nodded, seemingly in the passive mood today. He let Clyde 'win' their fight, and now he was going to the office without putting up one. "Are you feeling okay?" Token asked, turning to the blonde, "I can walk you to history. We have time. There's about ten minutes before the bell rings."

"T-thanks." Tweek forced a grin, hoping he was wrong and Cartman was early for class instead of sitting in the office. Craig gave Token and Tweek a short wave, turning on his heels to go to the office. _It doesn't matter how willing you look to go down and talk to Principal Victoria, I'm still going to be worried._

He stared after Craig, longing to go with his boyfriend. _It's not like I could get him out of trouble, but maybe moral support __would help.. _The blonde must have stared a little _too _long because he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. "He'll be fine." Token gave Tweek a reassuring smile. The smile was accompanied by a light squeeze. "Ready?"

Tweek nodded, slamming the locker door. By now, most of the students had quit making Tweek the focal point of the hallway; They were back to chatting with friends, however he did receive a couple glances as he walked with his friend. "What d-did they want him for?" He asked Token, unable to keep the hint of worry from tainting his voice.

Token thought for a moment. "Whatever it is, I doubt it's too severe."

He accepted the information, trying to push negative thoughts away. "I hope so. -ACK-!" Tweek added. "D-do you know where Clyde is?" Tweek wondered aloud. Clyde would sometimes wander to Token when he was fighting with Craig; It was how things seemed to work with their circle of friends.

Token gave Tweek a strange look, "I haven't seen him. Well-" He paused slightly, "I did see him in the hallway just before you and Craig came in. He went to his locker, probably in American Lit. by now."

_Does that mean you didn't talk to him? Clyde must really be upset with Craig if he hasn't gone to Token. If you can't talk about things with your boyfr__iend, who do you have left? _"Oh." He sighed, disappointed.

"Is something the matter with Clyde? He didn't stop to talk to me." Token glanced at Tweek. It wasn't a look of pleading or despair. It was a look of curiosity, amusement. _I guess I can't blame h__im. Clyde gets pissy over silly things._

Tweek felt uneasy telling Token this, like he was starting rumors. _But I'm not starting rumors if it's fact, right? _"Clyde.. uh, h-he and Craig are fighting." He whispered, darting his gaze around the hallway to ensure no one overheard. _If nobody overhears, I can't be gossiping._

Token shrugged, "Huh." Was all he said in response to his friend, entering their history class. The pair walked through the door, taking seats at the table near the back. This was one of the few classes were they had tables instead of desks. Tweek liked it, since he had Token to sit with. If he didn't know anyone, the tables-instead-of-desks thing would have been pure hell. "Okay, Tweek, listen." Tweek snapped his attention back to Token. "Clyde and I had a fight. Nothing big. But that could be why he wasn't talking to me. Maybe he's just having a hard time at home or something."

"M-maybe." Tweek agreed, noting how Clyde seemed to be mad at almost everybody. _Except me. _"He gets over t-things fast though." The blonde added, hoping it was true for this time. Thoughts of Craig and Clyde never making up sailed back at full force.

"Yep, I'm not too worri-" Token was cut off by Ms. Shism, the history teacher.

"Good morning students, let's get started." She announced, shutting the classroom door to "officially" begin the period. "Today, we're going to review for the test on Monday-" _Oh, fuck, please don't say it. _"-with the assistance of a partner quiz!" _Partner quiz? She always hands out _pop _quizzes._

"We're going to try something new called a _partner _quiz. I thought it would help get everyone in the studying spirit!" _Ms. Shism is way too happy about distributing tests, quizzes and homework. It's like she enjoys torturing us students. _"I'm going to allow you to choose your partner. Groups of two. Go!"

The half the class sprang up, already chatting with their friends and deciding who was going to be with who. Tweek wanted to be with Token. He didn't know too many other people in this class, aside from Kyle Broflovski... which he would take Token over any day of the week. _Kyle's not awful, but I can't honestly say he's my favorite either. We spent like a month together that one time. That was the worst month of my life, too. I will never _ever _do that kind __of crazy shit again._

"Want to be partners?" Token asked, ending Tweek's thoughts about that tedious summer month.

Tweek nodded, "Sure."

"Cool, man." Token smiled at him.

"What's t-this test on, anyway?" Tweek asked Token, nervously tapping his fingers on the desk. Ms. Shism's quizzes weren't the easiest things in the world, and the blonde didn't even study. _I should have known we would review like this. It's never a simple review sheet or packet, it has to be a quiz of some sort._

Ms. Shism approached the table as Token attempted to answer, placing the quiz on the desk. "Ah, Token and Tweek. Good luck to you both." She interrupted, giving us a fakey smile, looking more unnerving than reassurin_g. I can't tell if she thinks we are truly going to fail or not. She has to know by now that Token is a straight A student. We've been in school for five months._ She twisted around without another word, turning her attention to the table behind them instead.

Token scanned the paper, "The Mesopotamian Age." He replied, giving Tweek one of those charismatic smiles of his, confidence clear in his eyes, "Easy, we can do this no problem. Most of the quiz is geography, so we shouldn't have too many problems with this."

Tweek was a little more reassured, his hands ceasing to tap nervously along the clear top of the desk, _I am so lucky that Token knows this subject and is so confident in it. Otherwise we'd both be screwed… God knows how much help I'll be. _

"First question," He started, eyes lowered to read the question out loud, "Mesopotamia was the land between the _blank_ and _blank_ river." His grin only widened, "Man, this is easier than I thought."

He looked up at Tweek for a quick second, "The Euphrates and Tigris river?" His soft brown eyes were reading Tweek's, trying to verify whether it was right or not - even if he knew that was the answer was correct. It was, after all, a partner quiz.

Tweek gave him a quick nod, giving him the "okay" to write the answer down, "S-sounds right."

Token scribbled down the answer quickly after given permission, writing it in perfect print.

He pushed the paper up a bit more so he could look levelly at the next question. "Alright, next question. The two rivers then empty into the?" He paused, his eyes rising to look at Tweek once more.

"P-Persian Gulf, I think. I don't know!" Tweek replied frantically, doing his best to keep his voice at a whisper so their answers wouldn't be stolen by another group.

Token paused for a second, as if he were making a mental map in his head of the Ancient Greece's geography. "Seems right to me. Nice one Tweek." he replied after his consideration, and then scribbled the answer down.

"Q-question three."

The rest of the class was a blur for Tweek. It had sped by, thanks to Token, who knew many of the answers. _He's like an encyclopedia or something. I don't know how he learns that much. _They were one of the first to finish, again thanks to Token._ Token was right. It was one of the easier tests. Much easier than what I thought it would be. _

As the bell rung, Tweek nearly jumped, started by the noise that signaled the end of class. _Why can't they just tell us when class is over? Or change the sound of the bell.. That would work too._ He leaned over the desk, pulling his neat pile of books and folders closer to him and slid them off the desk into his arms. He followed after Token on the way out of the class room, "D-do you think we'll g-get a good score?"

"Certainly. I think we did _really_ well. I'm pretty sure we aced it, that or we're close to acing." He said with another of his famous, charming grins. He made his way over to the teacher's desk, and then placed the quiz carefully on the pile before turning towards the door.

Tweek gave a small smile towards his friend in response. "T-that's awesome." He clung to his books a bit tighter, not wanting the pile in his arms to slip from his grip.

Token gave a nod, "Yeah. See you later, Tweek." With that, he slid from the class room, disappearing into the hallway.

Tweek moved towards the theater room, searching for Craig on the way. He paused, resting himself against the lockers as he searched the stream of people in the hallway. None were Craig.

With a heavy sigh, he turned reluctantly into the Theater class before he was tardy, guessing Craig was either already in class – or still occupied in the principal's office. With less than a minute left, he wouldn't have time to ask what happened anyways.

This class he was alone, not a friendly face in sight. He didn't like this arrangement in the least, it was nothing but pressure. Being put on the spot like that. He didn't need acting skills, he'd never have the courage to get onto stage anyways. _Why are we forced to do this anyway? At the begginning of the semester, we were told that getting into a decent acting career was nearly impossible to do. We don't learn anything important, either. It's just "how to stay in character" or "Shakespeare's works"._

He huddled over his notebook as he sat at his own table, drawing small circles in it out of boredom, waiting for class to begin.

He looked up from the paper, eying everyone else curiously as they took their seats. _Class must be starting_, he thought, folding his notebook back and pushed it aside. The teacher was waving his hand impatiently, ordering other kids to settle down.

The teacher then drew the screen down as he began instructing us to bring out a pencil and paper next. _That's strange, we're in theater.. we don't usually watch and write. The one time we did was on the day where we watched demonstrational videos. Normally.. it's all script and acting. _

The screen revealed a desktop of the computer, projecting a movie player onto the white screen – it was the cheap, free kind that anyone could produce with Windows Movie Maker.

"Today instead of continuing to practice your small acts, you're going to be taught something you should have learned in Kindergarten," The teacher, Mr. Wickars explained, an expression of disappointment apparent on his face. "We're going to review what 'bullying' is. The faculty have made a video regarding this issue and if you aren't paying attention, I will require you all to take notes. All the classes are doing this so _no _you are not being treated unfairly."

Tweek paled. He had a close incident with Cartman about two months ago, and he hoped the movie wasn't going to be about sexual harassment. _If it is, I'll probably go puke and have to be sent home.. Then my mom will be worried and so will Craig and just GAH that's pressure! _He watched as Mr. Wickars pressed the play button, the video starting with sad music. Text appeared on the screen, reading 'There are different forms of bullying' followed by 'and each type is bad and can destroy lives'. Tweek groaned inwardly, _this is just another one of those educational movies that drag on and on repeating the same things. _The administration often made these when a problem occurred within the school, like the time in November when boys starting flooding the bathrooms. They had put paper towels to cover the drains, making the water overflow.

And then there was that video about how writing in the stalls wasn't allowed. _Not that it mattered, people are going to do it even if you do make a crappy forty minute movie. _Then there was the time that kids skipped class to 'clean the bathroom', last year, when they were juniors. _That had also warranted an educational movie explaining why it's bad to skip class._

He returned his attention to the movie. Tweek nearly laughed out loud; The camera shook slightly, as it was focused on Mrs. Richer, the calculas teacher, and Mr. Mawur, the evil physics teacher. _He always tells me that my twitching is something I can prevent by getting more sleep, and then sends me to the office for interrupting his class. _Tweek knew he wasn't to blame, though, since Craig had similar problems with that particular teacher. They stood out side the front doors, and seemed to be arguing. The audio was crappy, so the blonde couldn't really tell what was going on. But one thing he could conclude was that both their acting skills sucked.

Mrs. Richer was then shoved by Mr. Mawur. Some people in the class giggling, receiving a warning glare from Mr. Wickars. The video _was _funny. Mr. Mackey and Principal Victoria were gossiping about "classmates" aka other teachers, now. _Did they throw this together in ten minutes? This is horrible and makes bullying into a joke.. _

The video droned on. Tweek gave up on any hope that he had about this changing the way kids of South Park High School thought about bullying – it wasn't going to happen. Not with teachers acting like kids and doing a lame job at it.

He allowed his eyelids to droop, just as the majority of the class had done already.

* * *

><p>A tray in hand, piled high with french fries and a rather huge looking cheeseburger, he returned to the table they practically owned for every year of high school. He found Token, Tweek and Craig at the table, <em>there is no way I'm going to be sitting next to Craig today. It's bad enough Token's ignoring and rejecting me – I shouldn't have to put up with Craig doing the same.<em>

He gave the two a smile as he came and sat on the opposite side of Token, avoiding the empty seat next to Craig that was always reserved for him, "What'cha guys talking about?" He asked nonchalantly as he raised a French fry from his tray.

Craig's eyes darkened, knowing that Clyde's change of seat was purposeful. "Nothing interesting. Just useless conversation," he replied in his usual nasally tone.

Clyde acted as if he didn't hear Craig, instead he locked his eyes onto Tweek for his answer, "Well? I kinda want to be a part of the conversation too," his voice was joined with a small laugh.

"That makes two of us." Craig muttered under his breath when he realized Clyde wasn't going to talk to him – or even look at him for that matter.

Tweek's eyes widened slightly as Clyde addressed him, trying to pull him into this drama. His eyes flashed over to Craig, as if searching for a good answer within the stoic male – but he seemed more focused on Clyde than anything else. He returned his gaze to Clyde's, deciding it was best to respond and not have Clyde pissier than he was now. "Uhh... L-like Craig s-said..." His fingers shook, as if he were unsure what to say. "N-nothing interesting. W-we were just talking about t-the bullying movie the teachers m-made us watch."

Clyde gave a satisfied smile with Tweek's response, then nodded, agreeing, "Yeah. Looked pretty cheesy to me."

Token gave a light laugh, breaking the tension Clyde was making, "We were just talking about that. I bet Craig that I could make a way better movie than that if I wanted to. I mean, they'd taken a pathetic camera and a two second written script and made it in some crappy film maker like Movie Maker or something. There was no lighting – no angles…" He trailed off, shaking his head in disappointment.

Clyde was a little annoyed that Mr. Peacemaker was trying to involve Craig into their conversation – something he really didn't want to do. _That would ruin the whole plan of "ignoring-Craig-like-he-did-to-me." _

"I'm sure you could. You seem like you know enough." Clyde gave another nod, once more pretending like Craig wasn't mentioned. He took another handful of fries and dropped them into his mouth, eating them quickly.

Craig's fingers were noticeably clenching his fork tighter, fingers turning practically white to express his anger, "I know your game Clyde, so knock it off." He growled slightly.

Clyde cracked a small smirk at Craig's anger, trying not to make it noticeable, take that Craig._ Now you know how I felt when you canceled on me, leaving me alone with no plans. Again. _"Did you guys hear that? It sounded like someone just took a shit."

Craig's eyes only narrowed, but he didn't reply.

Clyde gave a shrug of his shoulders, brushing off Craig's threat. "Oh well, anyways," He moved his attention to Token, being as Craig went silent; Clyde quickly grew tired of provoking him. "Want to hang out or something later?" He asked with a hopeful spark in his dark blue eyes.

"Can't. Sorry, I have homework yet, and I just don't feel like hanging out today. Y'know? I'm tired, Monday's are exhausting. I'm ready to just go home and go to sleep."

He gave Clyde a smile, _as if a smile makes it all better._ Clyde thought sourly. "Oh, yeah. That's cool." He replied, letting his head droop into his raised hand, feeling at that moment his head would roll off his shoulders and fall to the ground if he didn't hold it up. "I uh, was busy anyways." _Great cover there, Donovan. Now you sound like a complete loser with no life._

Clyde rolled his eyes up towards Tweek, the only person he wasn't having problems with, to find him talking with Craig, a smile on both of their faces. _Seems like Craig's over being mad at me for being a dick. That or Tweek is really good at distracting him._ They seemed in deep conversation – something he was sure he wasn't welcomed into… being as he was "mad" at Craig still. _Why couldn't Token and I be like that? _

_What's wrong with me? I'm losing all my friends. Craig's rejecting me, Token's rejecting me… it's only a matter of time Tweek rejects me too. Then what will I be? Friendless and alone. I'll be the new Kip Drordy._ His eyes dropped from Tweek to stare at his tray. For once, he wasn't hungry for food. He was hungrier for attention; he wanted to laugh, to smile with his friends. _What friends? _

Clyde, desperate to make plans with Token, perked up once more and looked at his boyfriend, "What about tomorrow? Can we hang out then?" He asked, giving a weak smile to cover up his disappointment with the previous rejection, feeling like he was setting himself up to fall again.

Token thought for a moment, but then shook his head. "I don't think so. I think I have plans with my mom tomorrow. Besides, Tuesdays are bass practice days. You know that." He said, giving a laugh as if he thought Clyde's suggestion was ridiculous.

Clyde gave a pout, bringing his eyes down to glare at his food once more. "The day after that?" The brunette asked, trying again.

Token laughed again, "Dude, I can't plan on how much homework we'll get that day! Homework comes first, remember? Then it's friends."

Clyde bit his lip, deciding that he shouldn't ask what Token was doing Thursday and end up dying inside. _So now I see where I stand._ _I'm both just-a-friend, and am less than a sheet of fucking paper._"Oh." He replied softly, "Okay. That's… cool too. Right. School.. comes first."

For the rest of lunch, Clyde went silent, not talking at all except for adding a few "mmhm's" and "Yeah totally's" as Token continued to talk – seemingly oblivious to his disappointment and zombie-like mood.

* * *

><p>Clyde sat in study hall, regretting his decision at the beginning of the year to sit next to Craig. <em>I should have known we'd have fights like this. Maybe I could have put Stoley in between us. <em>Kevin Stoley wasn't exactly a _close _friend of his, but the brunette knew that he didn't have any close friends. Kevin was a loner. That is, if you don't count the weird geeky kids that he hangs around at lunch time.

Clyde couldn't even concentrate on homework. He had wasted almost the entire time twiddling his pencil, stabbing his eraser, or doodling in the corner of a worksheet. Craig and his fight had really upset him.

_I truly didn't mean to flip out on him. _He told himself, _I was just mad because over the weekend, Token completely ignored everything I tried to do. ...Not that you tried anything, Clyde. _He bitterly thought, remembering how he hadn't gone anywhere for the entire weekend. Clyde had sat at home, sleeping and eating for the most part. Eating because he was frustrated and stressed, not because he was hungry.

His friends envied that he could binge and not gain much weight, if any. Clyde didn't see it that way; He already acquired his fat and was at maximum capacity. However, he wasn't too concerned. Clyde's weight wasn't made fun of, they had Eric Cartman for that. _Cartman is far more overweight than I'll ever be_, he promised himself. _Because if I get fatter than Cartman, I'll become the butt of their jokes. _And Clyde knew very well that this high school could be incredibly cruel when it came to fat people.

Clyde was startled from his thoughts when he felt something sharp poking him in the arm. He spun around, seeing that it was Craig. "Ow, dude. The hell?" He whispered harshly, trying his best to glare. The only look Clyde Donovan was good at was "the puppy dog face" and that came in handy pretty often.

Especially with parents.

"Hey," Craig blinked at him, sparing Clyde a greeting in complete monotone. His eyes matched his voice; They didn't give anything away. _Is he still mad at me or pretending the fight never happened? _Clyde wasn't willing to pretend it didn't happen. Bros didn't do silent forgiveness.. They was for pussies.

Clyde stared back. "Hi Craig." He said lowly, attempting to sound dangerous or at least grumpy. The truth was: He was hoping they _would _make up, just not in the sappy way... even though Clyde couldn't deny he loved sappy endings to movies and books. His friends made fun of him for crying at everything, sad or happy – no matter.

Clyde was trying his best not to give anything away. He wasn't completely sure that Craig wanted to make up and wasn't going to be the first one to crack._ He was being a compete # the entire weekend.. Craig deserves to work for our friendship, he was the one who messed it up. _Clyde realized that his logic was tainted, but didn't make any move to change it. _I will not be the all-forgiving friend. Not this time._

A slip of crumpled people was pushed onto his desk. Clyde attempted to look unhappy and bored with opening the note as he unfolded it. He had no intentions of allowing his ex-best friend to see that he was secretly anxious to read what was written inside? _Does Craig never want to speak to me again? Want to dump me as a friend permanently? Or is he going to try and make up? _

Clyde's dark blue eyes scanned the note. It read, 'want to draw', in tiny print. _Craig's handwriting is microscopic. How does anyone read his shit? _Clyde glanced at Craig, questioningly, before writing in the spare space. 'ok.' He slipped it back onto Craig's desk.

Craig nodded, tearing out a piece of notebook paper. He drew a stick person, labeling it 'marcus' at the top. This was one of their frequent games that they played last year to annoy the study hall teachers. They liked to doodle Marcuses during class. Each one was unique and somewhat disturbing in its own way.

Craig shoved the paper over to Clyde, who immediately added two eyes, -one of which lazy- and a rather large mustache. He looked like a cartoon character. The brunette pushed it back, and watched in faint amusement as Craig drew on a shirt that said 'fuck you'. _Craig has a shirt like that.. _And as if on cue.."He spent the night." Craig stated in monotone, staring at the drawing.

Clyde tried desperately to remain as stoic as Craig, but it was proving to be more of a challenge than he had originally thought. The paper was given back to him, and he added giant baggy pants, renaming the picture 'gangstah marcus'.

Clyde knew Craig well enough to know that he was also amused with this, but before Craig could add to it, Mrs. Spone snatched it away, staring down at the two boys.

"Do you find this an appropriate activity for study hall?" She snapped, glaring and shoving the drawing in both of their faces. Clyde gulped; He hated getting in trouble when it wasn't for talking. The teachers didn't do too much if you simply talked during class, but _this _...Clyde didn't know what was going to happen.

_Let's see if I can weasel my way out.. _He thought, desperately trying think up an excuse as fast as possible. "We were just-" Clyde started, getting cut off by Craig.

"We finished our homework." Craig stated, meeting the teacher's glare. _How come he doesn't have any issue with standing up to them? Craig could get detention but he doesn't seem to even care or give it a second thought._

That excuse wasn't going to fly with Mrs. Spone, "That gives you no reason to draw things that are in violation of the rules."

"It's not in violation of the rules," Craig argued, continuing in monotone, "none of that is against the school policy."

Clyde know could see where he was going with this. It was true, South Park High prided themselves on being one of the few schools that gave kids the freedom of speech, as long as it wasn't bullying another student or _sexually _explicit. Their drawing of Marcus didn't match any of the criteria for it to be counted as inappropriate.

"You-" Mrs. Spone stopped mid-sentence, "This is your first strike, Clyde, Craig." She briskly walked away, writing a note on her personal pad. Mrs. Spone had taken Marcus with her and thrown him into one of her desk drawers. _I'm going to assume it's about us using that rule to an advantage. Great, now the school board will probably remove that right from the students._

"Erm.. thanks.." Clyde said uncomfortably, ready to make peace. He hoped that Craig wouldn't hold his bitchy attitude against him forever. The brunette realized he overreacted; That was obvious – but he didn't realize how much he would miss Craig if they ever were to part ways.

Craig gave him a cheeky grin, "I got your back, man." He thumped Clyde on the back to serve as emphasis. "Bros look out for each other." Clyde felt himself grin at this.

_Yeah, bros look out for each other. _The words echoed in his head. Clyde was moved by how honest that simple sentence sounded, because that particular sentence was definitely true. _Only bros would do a thing like that. Only bros make somewhat inappropriate drawings during __study hall._

Clyde sprung up as the bell rang, gathering all his things and rushing to the door, waiting for Craig. He watched the other students file out, and as Craig passed through, Clyde tagged along, slinging an arm over his shoulder.

Clyde smiled. He was thankful to have his bro back.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**TC: **Third Chance

**LM:**LilxMomo

**TC: **This was actually supposed to come out Thursday. Sorry for the long wait...

**LM: **Yeah, sorry. It's because I'm so goddamn slow at writing.

**TC: **It was moreso because your laptop was being a Mr. Tucker.

**LM: **True dat. ;3

**TC: **I don't have anything else to do add other than this was by far the hardest chapter to write. Yup. Apparently LM has nothing to say, either. We're both sick of Chapter Five and are losing sleep thanks to this lovely fic. (In other words, that means there's going to be tons of mistakes within the chapter.)

**wickedthunder02:**

**LM: **Refreshing? Like a cool summer breeze.

**TC: **...Okay.. LM is getting way too overtired. I'm a fan of Craig's personality too. But I also like Tweek. And Clyde. Not so much Token.

**LM: **LOL I'm not overtired. Stop spreading rumors. Oh and yeah, Token sucks.

**TC: **We both hate Token.

**SparklesMakeMeHappy:**

**TC: ***high five* Another Token hater! Whoo!

**LM: **Because Token IS an ass. Clyde.. yeah, he is a drama queen.

**TC: **That's because the person he was modeled after is a drama queen..

**LM: **You don't say.. XD

**ElissaTucker3:**

**TC: **LM gets detention all the time. You aren't alone :D.

**LM: **-glare- I do not.

**TC: **Yes you do. It's for being tardy too often.

**LM: **That was just once during last quarter.

**PWN3D:  
>LM: <strong>Thanks.

**TC: **Haha, their personalities are really fun to write. Glad you like them.

**Thanks to the following people who favorited this or added it to their story alerts, or both but didn't review.**

**_Britnotmobile_**

**_PippaTheKid_**

****Love to readers, double the love to reviewers! :)** **

****Hope everyone likes Chapter Five. ** We both never want to see it again.  
><strong>


End file.
